Memories of Blueland
by ejwalker
Summary: This is a collection of stories from the original Luna forums. For more information, see inside.
1. Introduction & The Edge

**I own none of these stories. They were posted by various people in the official forums when Luna was run by gPotato, and those forums were lost when the game was shut down. But since I saved these stories for personal enjoyment, they were not lost along with the forums.**

 **A new official Luna server has been recently started, therefore I am in a nostalgic mood and want to share these with other Luna fans. I have only edited them for spelling, grammar, clarity and such. Some of them are unfinished, and I have left them that way. Some did not have names; I gave them names so that I don't have to call all of them Unnamed Story.**

 **If any of the original posters see this, they may PM me. They should include their user name from the original Luna forums (for confirmation that they are the actual author), and state whether they would like me to take their story down or simply credit them for it.**

* * *

"The Edge"

In the beginning of time,

There was a young warrior who fell off an edge.

The end.

* * *

 **As you can see, the name has quotes around it. That means I assigned it to the story. Names by the original author will not have quotes.**

 **Don't worry, the rest of the stories are longer than this one.**


	2. The Tale of Kiweh

The Tale of Kiweh

Let it be known that I, Kiweh, am the greatest of all sorcerers.

'Why?' you ask? Huh..? What do you mean, you didn't ask?! Well, whatever. I'll tell you anyways.

It's because I cast the ultimate spell. The ultimate spell of ultimate power with ultimate timing of... ultimate proportions...? Whatever! Just know that this spell was AWESOME and it makes me better than you!

You see, it happened like this.

I was fighting a monster, because that's really all you have to do in this world. It was pretty crowded since my loser 'Controller' always joined the first channel she saw, so I always ended up having to fight for my monsters. Well, it wasn't ME doing the fighting but.. whatever, that's not the point!

Anyways, I was giving it my all, and trash-talking all those silly monsters. I remember the first time I did this, I thought my player had to be some sadistic creep! She killed monsters that said stuff like, 'What a nice day it is!' Then I realized, what the muffins, they're monsters! What should I care? (Plus they're only recycled and transported back to the same area of the map.)

Oops, did I get off-track again? It's your fault for reading so hard! ANYWAYS, it was maintenance time. I know now that was the time that 'Controllers' changed and tested our world, or something like that. Anyways, I watched the people disappearing around me but... this time, my player didn't make me leave. She stayed all the way until the maintenance was starting! I was kind of annoyed, because I didn't want my level (leveling is hard y'know) to go away because of a rollback. I kept watching as people disappeared before the countdown to maintenance, and waiting for the time of Darkness to arrive. That's what I call that maintenance thing now. I just thought of it, because when it happens, everything goes dark for a while. I don't even get to sit with the other characters.

The server countdown reached one, and I got worried.

I don't like the dark, you see... Shut up! It's not funny! It's just... nobody knows I'm here. I see other people around me, but I couldn't talk to them on my own. I couldn't pet dogs that followed me, I couldn't fight my own battles, and all of this just amplifies in the darkness. You realize how insignificant you really are. In one second, you can be erased. Stop existing. Forever.

And the one life you had, wasn't even yours.

It's because of all these thoughts that I had started to fear the dark, and the thinking that came with it. Would I ever see the light again? I wondered in that brief second before shut down.

But wait, why was I still there? Everything else had gone around me. Everything except the ground I stood on and that, too, seemed to be getting more and more transparent, and less and less likely to let me keep standing on it. I was scared out of my mind! I wouldn't tell just anyone this, by the way. I consider us buddies since you've stuck with me for so long... Oops, again... getting off track. Sorry.

I knew I couldn't do anything on my own.

Was I really going to disappear? Was this it?

No! Did you forget I'm the greatest sorcerer of all time? I cast a spell! But, wait. I had cast a spell. Me. And it was a spell that I didn't have. It was a spell nobody had.

I shouldn't have been able to do it, but I did.

The second I did it, for a split second, everything went really weird. It seemed like everything was made out of squares, and my arm had disappeared. I thought maybe I broke the world. But no, just as quickly as everything went screwy - everything fixed. People started reappearing around me. Monsters came back. Trees, the ground, water. Everything came back.

I fell to the ground in relief and kissed it.

Wait, WHAT?

That's right, whatever I did... now, I could move. Now, I was my own person.

**Meanwhile**

Naomi, in another world, tapped her chin in confusion. Why couldn't she use the name Kiweh again?


	3. Tavuk's Adventures with Kiyoma

Tavuk's Adventures with Kiyoma

Once upon a time in Blueland, there lived a little sorceress named Tavuk. She lived with her bigger thieving brother Delikedi and her baby archer sister Poncik.

She liked mobs who said funny things, whereas her brother liked fishing the old fashioned way. They all hoped to live in their own farm in the future.

One day Tavuk heard her archer sister murmuring some words in her sleep. She apparently was dreaming of a bow that she'd like to have.

"...bow ...Ki...Kiyoma... b-bow..."

Tavuk learned that the bow her sister was talking about was a red item by the name of Kiyoma's Feathered Horn Bow, and was being dropped by the harpy boss Kiyoma. She told her brother Delikedi about the situation, but Delikedi had reached level 54 and run out of things to do. Now he just wandered around getting in trouble.

So Tavuk decided to hunt this Kiyoma herself and get her bow and give it to her sister. She figured that if she killed this Kiyoma 100 times, she surely would get the bow. So she geared up for battle, went to Red Orc Outpost and began staking her adversary out.

Little did she know that she was about to embark on a mission that would test her skills, her stamina, her will and her faith in the most above-average of standards.

She encountered and defeated Kiyoma countless times (about 800). She fought regardless of the burning sun, the harsh storms or the indecent winds. She endured ksers, pkers, spawn fails, she endured others who mistook Kiyoma to be the Harpy Queen, she endured mouse battery depletion, bugs, disconnections... Yet she persisted. She deleveled to 46 whenever she reached level 47 to keep her chance optimal. She reset her alarm clock at whenever the next wave would begin. For two whole weeks, her only objective was that pumped-up harpy, whose spawn frequency was once every 30 minutes by which she religiously calculated the next spawn time.

Tavuk killed and killed, but Kiyoma's bow was not to drop. She killed other bosses in between spawns (none of which more than 50 times), and they dropped:

2 [Battle Terminator of the Tribe], 1 [Dark Magician's Wand], 1 [The Jewel of Nile], 1 [Slippery Snake's Scale Boots].

Yet Tavuk knew these were just... Well they weren't anything really... She guesses she was just lucky. The same way another boy got lucky with the Kiyoma's bow between her changing channels. The boy braggingly showed it to her.

However Tavuk was not one to quit. She considered quitting countless times (about 800), but... she was so invested. It was that downward spiral of constant dilemma: quit and all that work is lost, or don't quit and risk wasting more weeks, maybe months on this mediocre boss named Kiyoma. Forty foxes wandered in her mind:

...Maybe there's a bug? ...Maybe I'll be one of those who get it at the millionth try? ...Maybe if I don't stay at Kiyoma's level something may change... Aw c'mon... it's bound to drop... Maybe they don't give bows to sorcerers? ...Maybe we're all just puppets, controlled by our masters outside the internets...

Tavuk went to Meditation Point to do some soul searching.

She knew that she could gather enough money grinding to just buy the bow, but she also knew that it wasn't just about having it. It was a battle of will, from which she would gain much more than just the bow. The rest was irrelevant. She also decided that she would never try this again unless it was for a drop that she really, really, really wanted.

She even had a vision of her high school math teacher, who reminded her that an event with a chance p happening n times in a row was p^n.

"P+Q=1, P=p^n+0.995^800=0.018, Q=1-P+98%. You do understand me... don't you?"

If the bow's chance to drop was 1/200, Tavuk calculated, there's a 99.5% chance for it not to drop. Consecutive fails then could be represented as 0.995^X, where X is the number of trials. That meant her chance to fail to get the bow after 800 trials was 0.995^800 = 0.018, which correspondingly meant that her chance to get it was 1 – 0.018 = 0.982, or 98%.

Which meant that if 100 people each killed Kiyoma 800 times, she would be one of the two persons who couldn't get the bow. Then again she also knew that this probability could extend to one in thousands, or millions, so she didn't pay any more attention to it.

Finally, as the kill count passed the 800 mark, Tavuk once again rose for the challenge. She went through her morning duties of timing Kiyomas, bringing their spawn times close to each other, and she started to ask them nicely for the bow again, getting tough if need be. It was a sunny, hot afternoon on June 28. As Tavuk resolved yet another conflict with a Kiyoma, a strange sound was heard.

[Kiyoma's Feathered Horn Bow]

She would have danced with joy upon the sight of the bow in her inventory, had she gotten it earlier. A 'yay,' or 'hurray' would have also been possible choices, had she been the person she was at the start. But she was a different person now. She had climbed up the levels of elfin needs, to a stage where she reached self-actualization and fulfillment. The reception of the bow was pleasant indeed, however the accomplishment of a challenge that was most trying on every aspect of her soul gave her a much deeper sense of validation, the only outward manifestation of which was a mere smile.

\- THE END -


	4. The Legend of Kruul the Heretic

The Legend of Kruul the Heretic

This story is based in the future, where the 5th tier classes are out and the 6th tier classes are just being released.

Intro: There was a player who played Luna Online, who made a character, a mage, in honor and memory of his lost friend. He played his mage long and hard, devoting much effort and thought to this character. It wasn't long before he advanced through the classes. Mage, wizard, monk, bishop, and before everyone knew it, he was almost done with his grand master. The mage was powerful and unbeaten, but he wanted more power, a character that would destroy every monster in the game. The Luna team was still toying with some of the features of the 6th tier classes, and held one class back because they wanted to pick one player and one player only to test it out. This is where the story begins, when the mage just turned the right level for his 6th class job change, but was still undecided which class to take. This is the legend of Kruul, the Heretic...

1: It was a typical day in Blue Land. Players were grinding. Strange people who only fished and didn't level were fishing. And of course, noobs were begging and trying to sell overpriced items that wouldn't sell anyways. It was a fine and promising day as the 6th tier classes, the last classes in the game, had just been released the day before. But where there is light, there is shadow, for one soul was troubled by this because he didn't think there were enough options available for the last classes. He wanted to wait until he was sure the developers wouldn't release anymore classes, while other players were already far into their new classes.

2: The developers on the other hand, were worried that too many players would change to the next class before there was a chance to give the ultimate opportunity to one of them. This is when they came across a player, troubled by the lack of options, that they could offer this opportunity to. They decided that there was no one better to offer this opportunity than Saphars, the one person that the player knew and trusted on the team.

3: The next day, when the Luna team had found the player in-game, they sent Saphars in to tell the player that he would be the one to play the last class. He would play as a Heretic, a powerful caster that was able to wield new powers, extraordinary compared to other classes' skills. This class focused on unholy, fiery, deadly spells that would destroy anything in the players way. The main perk was that this class was insanely strong, but it was also an evil version of a cleric or priest; the player got buffs without losing the ability to do great damage. All of this was sure to please the player called Kruul.

4: Kruul took a moment to think it over before asking, "What do you want from me?" Saphars was shocked and taken aback, thinking Kruul would immediately accept. He took a moment to compose himself before answering, "We ask nothing of you, but play as you would normally and let us watch for research." Kruul looked at Saphars a moment before holding out his hand. When the two clasped hands and shook, the deal was forged and Kruul became the first Heretic, the first and last of these unholy abominations to walk the Blue Land.

5: Then he then took a moment to use a skill reset and choose his skills, the skills that the developers would soon regret giving him. Unknown to Kruul and the Luna team, he could destroy any monster in game as he had wanted, he would be able to fight other players whenever he wanted, even kill the NPCs of Luna, and worst, his coding couldn't be touched to delete him or get rid of his player info. He didn't realize this at first, but one day when he was mobbing near an NPC that gave him a quest, he cast his destructive area spell which killed the NPC next to him. He couldn't believe it, he had destroyed that which you shouldn't be able to kill in any game. Then he thought, and realized he had the power he wanted, the power to destroy anything and everything.

6: Kruul instantly made his way to Alker Harbor where he discovered his next unique ability, killing other players at will. He leveled Alker Harbor in a matter of moments. Everyone felt the blow, and the Luna team would be next to feel it. Calls, emails, every way you could think of to get a hold of the people who made Luna. Luna looked into what was happening. Players were complaining of a player going around and devastating everything in the game with skills they'd never seen before. When the Luna team tried to get rid of him, they couldn't because all his player information had disappeared somehow. They soon realized their mistake. When Saphars had given Kruul the new class, they also gave him all his character data so he was untouchable from outside of the game.

7: This was terrible, but there was hope. One developer came up with the idea to make a patch specifically for Kruul that would go inside his computer, find his character data and delete it from there. When they tried, it failed, but not without some success. It turned out that Kruul's character data now made it so that if he died by the hands of another player, his character data would be deleted. The Luna team decided that the best way to get rid of him would be to host event with the point of killing him. The community of players were interested in the event when they were told that the reason people and NPCs were dying was because of Kruul. Saphars himself would be leading the attack against what the event called him: The Heretic.

8: The stage was set and Kruul was game, it was the ultimate test for his skills and powers. He stood waiting, fully buffed and ready for his ultimate test. Then he saw Saphars shout, "Charge!" and a wave of characters running at him. He caught Saphars in the midst of the crowd and shouted, "You dare try and take that which you have given me in the first place? I will show you and all of Luna the true power that you gave me!" He started channeling his power into his first spell, an amazing area spell that decimated a good chunk of the army. Its dark fires were soon replaced by rogues using Quick Move, taking shots with their bows.

9: The arrows stung, but did little to phase Kruul. He loosed a bolt of abyssal dark energy at the rogues that shot him, and there was a rift of darkness in the air. When the air cleared, the rogues were on the ground and the other players were almost to Kruul. He wanted a good shot at Saphars, one that would show how he could decimate others. Fire surrounded him as he began casting his next spell and it was soon racing along the ground. A pillar of fire erupted around Saphars. Kruul grinned, but not for long, as Saphars emerged from the fire with Holy Barrier cast on himself, still advancing at Kruul. It was then that the first of the rogues and fighters came up to Kruul and started swinging and stabbing with their weapons. Kruul's health started to decrease, but slowly.

10: Kruul was agitated, he was being overwhelmed. The only problem with his skills was the long cool downs. He cast another area spell on a character in front of him, choosing one with lots of others around him. It got rid of some of them, but tanks were on him and healers were ready to heal them back to full health. He overestimated himself, he hadn't planned on ever fighting an organized and extremely large group of people. His health was dropping fast now that the magicians had caught up and started nuking him. He cast his instant AoE stun, shadows came up and those around him were covered in darkness, stopping them for a while. He needed to find a way out, some way he could get out of combat stance and log out so that his character might be safe for a while longer. It didn't seem like it would happen though, with all these players surrounding him.

11: Kruul started to panic, he used a potion and started to heal, but then he was stunned and stood in a daze, his health getting to dangerously low levels. He panicked as he saw Saphars in front of him, raising his weapon to deal the final blow. There was a roar as the players saw Kruul fall and suddenly disappear from the game. There was an equally vigorous roar in the building that contained the Luna team, as they could finally go on improving the game they loved so much.


	5. The Lost Document

Tales of the Blue Land: The Lost Document

"Oh where did I leave it?" Modesti pouted.

Cherry looked on with alarm, as yet another piece of clothing was thrown in a random direction. By this point, the small lodging that he shared with his mistress was in quite a disheveled state. Apprentice mages by nature were not noted for tidiness, but Cherry had not seen their room in quite this state before.

Modesti threw herself on the unmade bed, staring at the ceiling and thinking hard. "Farouk will kill me if he finds out I lost it," she muttered. _If the landlady doesn't get to you first,_ Cherry thought from his safe perch on top of the closet. "Well," Modesti sighed, "we will just have to go look for it. I probably dropped it on our last trip back from Mont Blanc Port."

Cherry groaned.

 _The problem with mistress,_ Cherry thought, _is that she is too easily distracted. And whenever Modesti gets distracted, she gets distracted in an epic way._ Like the last time Farouk sent them into Moon Blind Forest to gather mushrooms. The two of them somehow ended up deep within the Zakandia mines. They would still have been there if another party hadn't come by and kindly showed them the way out, as Modesti's other problem is that she has absolutely no sense of direction.

Modesti started rummaging though the mess in her room for supplies to throw into her kit bag. "Need this... not this... hmmm this might be useful... ewww what's this again?... ah found this... this might be useful... now where did we get this from again?"

"Ok, done, let's go, Cherry," Modesti finally trumpeted as she grabbed her bow and headed out the door. Cherry shook his head. Another problem with his mistress is her choice of weapons. There are plenty of perfectly decent wizard staves available at the stores. A very nice one in fact was going for a bargain the last time they browsed through the bazaar at Alker Harbor, but oh no, his mistress just had to use that old bow they had looted from a corpse in the mines. But then again, it was better than the cudgel she was using before that...

 _Modesti is so strange,_ Cherry thought, _but at least she feeds me right._ Then continuing on that line of thought, _All she seems to be surviving on is peanut butter and jelly sandwiches, plus sarsaparilla. Those can't possibly be healthy for a growing girl, now can they?_ Cherry frowned. _Maybe it's why she is so hyper all the time._

Modesti dashed down the stairs and into the busy streets, followed closely by Cherry. She waved cheerily at the harbor master, then dashed across the square to the bank teller. They then proceeded to visit almost every stall at the bazaar outside the bank, forgetting for the moment the purpose of her sortie in the first place. She ran past the Priestess Luna, who as usual calmly cautioned her not to run around the busy streets, but was cheerfully ignored as Modesti crashed into the Farm Manager for the umpteenth time that week. As usual the Farm Manager picked up Modesti, brushed off the dirt on her clothing, and sent her off cheerfully towards the gate to Draconian with Cherry in tow.

"Hello, Mr. Leopard." Modesti waved cheerily at the throng of cats outside the Alker Harbor gates. The cats were quite used to her by this stage, and actually welcomed her visits as Modesti often would give them treats from the fish she couldn't sell at the market.

"Hello, Kobold buddies." Modesti waved at the kobolds wandering aimlessly further up the road. They waved back cheerfully. They had been on good terms with her since she started sharing her peanut butter and jelly sandwiches with them. Modesti rummaged through her bag and presented them with a wrapped package from the bottom of the bag. "Yum," they yelped eagerly, as they unwrapped the rather squished sandwich which had been leftover from a previous trip. Cherry felt like turning green for a moment.

The gnolls kept a respectful distance from Modesti, the last few times when they eagerly went after her for a share of the peanut butter and jelly sandwiches were tragically misunderstood. The results were a dozen or so gnolls who had to be hospitalized for scorched fur and frostbite burns.

The lizardmen as usual still had not learnt their lesson, so Modesti happily taught them again... using her recently acquired bow. In the interim Cherry was looking around for a tree to hide behind. You see, his Mistress' strange choices in weaponry had made him quite the laughing stock of other pets at Alker Harbor. Cherry just prayed that everyone was at the Bazaar, and that they wouldn't bump into any of his friends whilst running through the Ruins.

Finally, they arrived at Zakandia Outpost. Modesti sat down on a patch of grass next to the dusty main road, and pulled a bottle of sarsaparilla from her bag. She offered some to Cherry and gulped down the rest greedily. She then threw the empty bottle at a nearby goblin who grabbed it greedily and cheerfully waved at Modesti. Goblins, for some reason like bottles; anything shiny in fact; but for some mysterious reason they really like empty pop bottles.

Entering Tarintus, Modesti and Cherry were greeted by a gaggle of Mimics, who hopped excitedly on seeing the twin-tailed, red haired apprentice mage. As usual, Modesti patiently listened as they showed her their newly acquired junk. Mimics collect things, they love shiny things like coins, but they usually end up collecting a lot of junk, which is why the areas they patrol tend to be really clear of debris. Modesti on the other hand was hoping that one of them might have picked up what she was looking for...

Further down the road, the mandragoras greeted Modesti and Cherry in the usual manner. Not being very bright vegetables, several of them were left pureed on the side of the road. The zombies chased after them muttering about brains. Lycanthropes ran away from Modesti as she tried to de-lice them with a dubious looking bottle of purple foaming liquid. The Iron Golems squeaked happily as she oiled them, but before long Modesti and Cherry were in Moon Blind Forest.

The Wild Red Bears were still sore from Modesti's last trip through their territory, so they gave her a wide berth. Modesti, however, had other ideas, and started rummaging through their bedding. Bears, you see, are also great scavengers and have a propensity for "collecting things". However, no bear was willing to make a fuss over a mage - especially this mage - rummaging through their personal effects. Whatever Modesti was looking for, the bears didn't have it, so she moved on.

She greeted the couple at the camp in the clearing, and then started to look through the stacks of supplies. "Thanks for helping us sort this mess out, you are so kind," Equpos said merrily. To Cherry's eyes, Modesti was actually making a bigger mess, but then again all that Equpos really looks at is the Materials Merchant...

Half an hour later, Modesti was having her usual bouts of disagreement with the orcs. The thing that really set her off was when one of them told her, "Don't get your knickers in a bind..." The orc uttering that last statement never finished his sentence, as Modesti shrieked something about "hentai" and let fly with magic and arrows in all directions. In the ensuing melee, gargoyles, bats and lava golems were dragged in, and the forest became a carnival of chaos until the Black Gargoyle stepped in and booted both Modesti and Cherry into the nearby swamps.

Modesti was still muttering about "hentai orcs," until she heard a familiar "sssssst" sound from a gang of lizard men lounging near by. They were chewing on bubble gum, sporting delinquent hairdos, wearing black leather jackets, and of all things, wearing shades in the swamps. One of them looked towards Modesti and said, "Yo." Modesti lifted one eyebrow and looked back.

"Like, wassup babe?" the lizard man quipped.

"Oh, it's you Zyst," replied Modesti. "What's with the new outfits?"

"Oh, some guys were running through the area," Zyst the lizard man answered, "and you know, like, we shook them down a bit." The rest of his gang nodded stupidly in agreement and sort of clicked their fingers in an attempt to look cool. "And then they gave us these crystal thingies, and when we shook them these things came out of them. So anyway, whatcha doing in our neck of the swamps?" Zyst asked.

"I'm looking for something, it belongs to Farouk," Modesti answered. At the mention of Farouk's name the lizard men quickly slithered back into the swamp, until all you could only see were their shades looking back at her from the swamp waters.

"Help me look for it, pretty please?" Modesti asked demurely.

"No way!" Zyst replied, "Farouk no like us, all we are to him is body parts for his insane experiments!"

So Modesti moved on. Thinking she would drop by and speak with Andorra lead to another wasted hour arguing with the "hentai orcs," and in the end she just ended up having tea with the lamias in the ruins close by. As usual, they wanted to get the latest news on all the new costumes coming out of the high fashion shops in Alker Harbor.

"Is it by Gocci?" one asked.

"Personally, I like the collections by Yipes St Lawrence," another one commented.

"I wonder what the Fall Collection from Vera VVang will be like?" quipped in another.

In the end, Modesti reached into her bag and pulled out the latest copy of Elle magazine (Blue Land Edition) and left it with them. A somewhat peanut butter stained copy to be sure, but that did not diminish the value of this "sacred" document to the Lamias.

Further down the road there were further altercations between Modesti and the "hentai orcs," this lasted all the way though most of Red Orc Outpost as well. Cherry was happy at least, the fashion conversation with the Lamias had left him thoroughly bored.

By the time they got to Mont Blanc Port it was getting dark, so Modesti headed towards the only store in town to sell off items they liberated from the orcs. Settling into a quiet corner, Modesti and Cherry shared the last peanut butter and jelly sandwich, and washed it down with a hot beverage from her thermos. They then wrapped themselves up in a blanket, curled up and fell deeply into sleep.

In the morning, Modesti had completely forgotten why they had journeyed out in the first place. So when she confronted Farouk later that afternoon in Alker Harbor, she profusely begged him to forgive her for losing his book.

"Oh, don't worry about that," he smiled, " _The Guide to Party Bosses and Leveling_ by Bloodsyn89 will be soon out of date anyway."

"How so?" asked Modesti.

"Well," Farouk smirked, "soon our whole world will change, it's written in the stars!"

Then he looked at Modesti slyly. "And to celebrate I have a job for you." There upon he sent Modesti on a quest that had her running all around Alker Harbor to listen to all the changes to come, keeping her effectively occupied for the next two hours... not Cherry, though, he knew well how things worked in the Blue Lands. Instead, he just went to sleep under a tree next to Celerian.


	6. A Guard by Knight

A Guard by Knight

 **Part 1**

 _What would she ever see in me?_

She stands with her back facing me, on one knee. She holds her shield up high over her head as the leopard comes crashing down upon her, instead of me. With all her strength and a loud cry of triumph she thrusts her shield forward and tosses the beast aside.

"Stay back," she says to me. She lunges towards the beast with her sword outstretched, her long flowing locks of blonde hair trailing behind her...

 _A lowly mage, fragile and weak..._

As her blade comes crashing down upon the beast its flesh is torn asunder, it cries out loudly in pain as it falls to the ground, taking its last breath. A pool of blood begins to form on the ground beneath her feet; she continues to stand guard, not giving up an inch of ground, as if she feels something else coming.

Several more leopards appear over the hillside in front of her, I count six in total. She stands strong, holding her sword to the side, calculating their movements. As the first leaps forward she sidesteps, allowing her blade to get in the way of the attacking creature. It is killed by the force of its own charge, split in half though its length.

The other leopards, realizing her strength, switch tactics. They learn from their fallen kin. They begin to surround her, circling slowly, closing in, trying to find weaknesses in her stance. There are none.

 _I could barely defend myself._

The leopards begin to attack at close range; the first comes directly for her sword arm. She quickly drops her arm into position and thrusts her blade down its throat, tossing its corpse aside.

The second rushes at her shield arm, attempting to strike her back. She swings around with her shield, smacking against its head with all her strength, the beast is tossed into the trunk of a nearby tree.

The remaining three leopards continue to circle her with intimidated steps, pondering their next attack. "I tire of this," she says calmly. She lets out a loud roar and all three beasts leap into the air to attack her at one time; she swings her blade around in a circle. The beasts die before they can even reach her.

 _She's a Knight, a protector of the innocent..._

She sighs deeply, surrounded by the bodies of her foes. "Are you okay?" she asks me. At the time I am too captivated by her beauty to even respond, and my wounds can't have helped. She glances over her shoulder at me, waiting for my response.

"Yes..." I whisper.

She nods her head then walks towards me. With each step she takes I find myself falling even further in love with her. With her soft complexion, sparkling green eyes, she is perfect.

 _Loved by all..._

As she reaches me she smiles softly, then holds her hand out to me.

I stare up at her, captivated, blushing at the chance to even touch her hand. I place my hand in hers, she lifts me to my feet.

Her hand is soft, fragile; you would never guess by her hands that she is a deadly fighter. These hands seem too innocent to have slain the foes which surrounded us. "I'm Joanne, Lady of the Shield. What's your name?" she queries.

"I'm... Luke," I reply.

 _Especially... by me..._

* * *

 **Part 2**

Luke walks along side Joanne down the fenced dirt path which leads towards Alker Harbor.

"Thank you for saving me," Luke says softly. He has a slightly childish voice which matches his shy personality. He's about five foot seven in height with a very fragile, slightly underweight appearance. He stumbles forwards a couple of times as he trips over the length of his white robe, struggling to keep pace with Joanne.

"It's really no problem; you should be more careful next time though," Joanne answers in a calm voice. Despite her youth Joanne seems to be a very mature, intelligent individual, clearly capable of taking care of herself. "Where do you come from?" she asks.

"I don't know," Luke answers, stopping in his place.

Joanne turns to him with a concerned look upon her face.

"I woke up in a forest, I didn't know who I was, or where I came from," Luke finishes.

Joanne walks over to Luke, and then softly pats his back in a concerned manner. "You said you didn't remember who you were, yet you claim your name is Luke," she replies.

Luke nods his head softly and stares towards Alker. "The further I walked, the more I remembered... I was hoping, if I continued walking I would remember everything about who I am... then they attacked," Luke says in a saddened tone. He sniffles softly and begins to cry. "I don't know anything... I..." Luke's legs start to falter; he collapses to his knees and begins crying. "I don't know!" he cries out.

Joanne, shocked, takes a couple steps back at first, and then returns to Luke's side. She bends down and wraps her arms around him softly, patting his back. "Hey, hey, calm down... I'll take you to someone who could help you..." she responds to Luke's crying.

"Really...?" Luke asks, sniffling softly. He uses the sleeve from his robe to wipe away his own tears.

"You should really wear a paper bag, Joanne," a mature feminine voice says from behind them.

Joanne glances over Luke's shoulder and sighs as she recognizes the individual behind him. Joanne stands, placing her hand upon the hilt of her sword.

"Then maybe people wouldn't cry when they see your face," finishes the newcomer.

"Hello, Icy, it's always a pleasure to see you again," Joanne replies in a sarcastic tone, examining Icy.

Icy is average height for an elf, about five foot six, with very soft features and an almost childish complexion. Her hair, blonde, seems never-ending; it reaches her knees. Her pointed ears reveal her elfish heritage; however rumors have circulated that she is half human. She wears heavy silver armor, which from the hips up seems built more around revealing her athletic figure then protecting her from attacks.

"You should drop the sarcasm, I am your superior after all, Joanne. I could demote you," she snaps her fingers, "like that!"

Joanne bows down and pretends to grovel in fear. "Oh, I am so sorry, my lady. I should be a little more careful with my tone," she answers, still in a sarcastic voice.

Icy rolls her eyes, then sighs softly. "Whatever," she barks, walking by Joanne, shoving her into the dirt as she passed. "Open the gates!" she yells to the guards ahead of her. The gates to Alker open as Icy walks through. She glances over her shoulder towards Joanne and smiles. "Don't let the trash in," she says to one of the guards, gesturing back at Joanne.

"I hate that self-righteous elf!" Joanne yells, standing quickly. She unsheathes her sword and waves it towards the gateway to Alker.

The two guards, noticing, leap out of the way as a white light suddenly appears from the tip of her sword and the gate to the city is torn in half. A couple of people on the other side gape in shock as the gates fall down. Everyone begins to stare out towards Joanne, who after her emotional display has a look of embarrassment upon her face.

Icy places her hand over her heart, appearing a little shocked. She stares back towards the gates, then smirks as she realizes what happened. "Was that meant for me?" she questions with a chuckle. Then she turns back towards the city and begins walking to the marketplace, without saying another word.

* * *

 **Part 3**

A little girl with shoulder length red hair stands in the middle of a lush field, filled with healthy grasses and beautiful flowers. She smiles as the wind picks up and softly flows through her hair, the same breeze also causes her knee length white dress to flutter softly in the wind. The sound of many birds flying overhead draws her attention to the skies; she giggles and spreads out her arms while she runs through the fields, imagining that she is also one of the birds, gliding in the wind.

"Children, so carefree. To once again be in the mind of a child, I would give anything," an elderly man muses while he watches the young girl's mimicry. He's late in his years, yet continues to have a somewhat athletic build. His fragile appearance is most likely a ruse to hide his true strength from his foes. He's dressed in a long white robe, wearing a silver plated breastplate for protection. A large sword is slung over his left shoulder; its length appears to be more than his height, while its weight appears to match his own.

He smiles as he begins to walk along the dirt path which will lead him to where the little girl has been playing. "Little one," he calls.

The little girl glances over her shoulder towards the man and smiles softly. "Sir Knight?" She wonders what the older man could want from her.

The man makes his way up the path to where she is standing.

"I was wondering if you knew which direction I could find Nera?" he asks.

The little girl stares up at him with a confused look upon her face.

"It's a very large castle, it's much bigger than this field," he tries to explain.

She shakes her head softly. "I'm sorry, Sir Knight, I've never heard of such a place," she replies, seeming saddened that she isn't able to aid him.

He smiles, then nods his head. "It's alright, little one," he answers, placing his hand on her hair and ruffling it gently. His hand lifts from her head and he turns around and begins to walk down the path he had come up.

The little girl, suddenly realizing she can help after all, chases after the man. "Sir Knight!" she exclaims, catching up to him and grabbing his hand softly.

The man stops and turns around; he gets down on his knees so he is at eye level with her. "Yes, little one?"

"I can take you to my daddy; he's a very wise man. He might be able to help you find your way!" She smiles brightly, feeling very good about helping a Knight.

"Thank you, lead the way please."

The little girl runs ahead towards a large hill, her arms outstretched, once again mimicking the birds that had flown overhead earlier.

The older man, taking his time, slowly follows after her, amused by her childish games. A strange smell comes to the man's nose as he moves forward.

"Something's wrong!" the little girl yells. She stops in place, then points forward towards a large amount of thick black smoke billowing into the sky from the direction of her village.

Having seen this before, the older man places his hand on the girl's shoulder, stopping her from progressing further. He glances down at the girl and sighs. "Little one, stay here, I'll scout ahead," he says in a concerned tone.

She stands in place as the man rushes ahead towards the village. He climbs the large hill that separates them from the source of the smoke, and stands in awe at the devastation before him. Nothing remains of the once flourishing village. He steps back in horror, then remembers the young girl behind him. He glances over his shoulder at her and sighs deeply, knowing she is the only survivor of her village.

"Sir Knight, what is it?" she calls to him.

He slowly walks back down the hill towards her. As he reaches her, she already knows what he's about to say. She breathes in and out, deeply and slowly, trying to stand tall and brave.

"What is your name, little one?" he questions, placing his hand softly on her shoulder.

She shakes her head and begins to cry, no longer able to hide her pain. She leaps into his arms, rests her head against his shoulder, and cries into his robe.

He wraps his arms around her and holds her tightly. "Your name?" he asks once more.

"I am no one," she answers, staring towards the now darkened sky.


	7. New Start

"New Start"

"All ashore that's going ashore!"

Didn't seem like much to me. A new land to explore, a new world to conquer, and new friends to make. I shifted my backpack, readied my trusty weapon and pulled down the brow of my hat... another MMORPG for me to conquer, and fun to have with friends in a brand new setting. I've done this before, my levels in my past, and my items from before at the ready if I needed it... I was set to take on this challenge with something powerful aimed right in between their eyes!

That's when the wind blew.

My hat flew away and I gave chase! Rushing through the crowded deck of the ship, wishing my feet could move faster, I jumped and reached for it-

I peered below me...

...into the abyss of the sky.

My feet off the ship.

My heart out of my chest.

My hand... in someone else's hand?

"HEY! Are you crazy?! Drop your bag! You're too heavy!"

Without second thought, I let my entire life slip away off my shoulders and into the empty sky... I watched it fade away along with the hat I've cherished for so long... I reached helplessly after it and-

I blanked out. I guess I couldn't stand seeing all of my history disappear before me.

=I=N=T=E=R=M=I=S=S=I=O=N=

"OMPH!" I immediately rubbed my head at the pain and looked around me. Just where was I? Taking a peer into my inventory for a Health Potion I-... oh... right... everything was gone... nothing but my trusty weapon on my side, and the two tiny boxes they handed to me when I boarded the ship. Everything else I had; the armor, the weapons, the money, was in the bag. Augh... and this head ache! I can't even remember why I came here let alone my-... my name?

I stared blankly at the ground for a few moments... trying to figure out my name...

...

"What a completely convenient way to start a new game..." I whispered under my breath. It was then a warm hand touched my aching head. Experience had told me that this was a kind hand... a gentle hand... a warm...

It pressed down incredibly hard.

"OOOOOOWWWWWW! What was that for?!" I stood up angrily and knocking away the arm in the air.

"HEY! Is that any way to treat the person that just saved your life?!"

Taking a moment to tend to my injury, I finally opened my eyes and looked at my savior. They were obviously new to the land too, without a backpack, only a weapon, and what I would call the standard rags of clothing that enemies can't help but not cut through.

Immediately, I got to my knees and bowed my head.

"Sorry, I didn't mean to offend you. Forgive my ignorance."

Quiet. Eerie quiet. A cricket would have been welcomed. I wondered if this land had crickets. I looked up and the person was gone. In their place, a piece of paper floating in mid air. Looked like a note meant for me. I took it in my hands, and sure enough it opened up for me. It read:

"You owe me BIG TIME."

Hanging my head down... I couldn't stand not remembering my name and not having my items... but I've been here before. I flipped the weapon in my hand and caught it by muscle memory. I attempted a favorite skill I knew- my weapon slipped and flew far from me, people stared as I slowly walked to pick up my foolish attempt of an ability. Seems I had forgotten more than just my name...

Strolling out the gates of the pier, I listened and enjoyed the familiar sounds of monsters being slain and people chattering about nonsense and the like. Suddenly another piece of paper floated up to me... waiting to be plucked and read.

*pluck*

"Maybe we'll meet again... you do look cute sleeping."

I stared up looking into the beautiful sky. The chorus of music made me smile. I already angered someone, that same someone has already complimented me, and I had nothing to my name - let alone my name.

The first Slime I saw...

I ran up to it, and screamed: "TAKE THIS!"


	8. Illusive Peace

"Illusive Peace"

I stand here, watching the gates. It seems peaceful, calm, serene. The white clouds in the sky, the green trees and grasses, it is a perfect place just to lie down and stare at the clouds all day. But that's just an illusion. A masterminded illusion. A cleverly managed deception. I stand here, because it is all that I can do, strengthening the facade that there is nothing wrong.

Of course there is.

As I plaster the fake smile on my face, I strain my ears to listen; to hear if the drums of war have started beating. As I nod my head and greet people, I wonder if my comrades are alive and safe. As I look far beyond, I wish that I could be with the army, and protect Blue Land, instead of just standing here giving the appearance of peace.

There is no peace.

I wonder when the people will realize that it is a war. They are too young, too naive and too reckless. How many will survive? How many will I meet again? But it is not my place to stop them. I can only smile and congratulate them for taking their first step into this cruel world.

There, I see another youngling shimmering into view. And I smile and say, "Hi, my name is Rien."


	9. Crossroads

Crossroads

The young elf stood quietly near Luna, watching her impossibly long hair float in the breeze. She was endlessly fascinated with the priestess. Even though she felt that she was likely to become a battle mage of some type, Luna's healing arts always made her catch her breath.

"You come here often," the priestess said gently, smiling down at the girl. "Is there something you want to ask me about?"

Her pale cheeks flushing with embarrassment, she shook her head rapidly. "No, I just... like watching you cast..."

"I see. Are you interested in becoming a cleric?"

"No, I need to become a battle mage of some sort." Pushing her light pink hair over her shoulders, she looked up at Luna. "I need to go find my parents."

"Were they in the initial battles?" Luna asked, looking concerned. When the girl nodded, she took her hands. "You don't need to be able to fight to find them. Why not learn to support others, and journey out with some friends?"

Why hadn't that occurred to her before? Blue eyes sparkling, she clutched at the older woman's hands. "Would that be okay?"

Luna laughed sweetly. "Of course. If you desire to become a cleric, I'm sure you will be far better at it than you ever would have been as a battle mage. And won't that help your parents more, in the end?"

She felt a sudden rush of energy and laughed too, backing up a bit. "I have a lot of practicing to do. Thank you!" Smiling, the girl rushed off, eager to practice and gain strength. Luna's watchful gaze followed her form until she faded into the horizon.

Every new adventurer was one step closer to restoring Blueland.


	10. The Quest for Power

The Strong and the Weak: The Quest for Power

They were descendants of a long, royal elf line named De'Loc. With their possession of great healing magic they were world famous, known to travel and help towns in trouble. In their family tree it had always been the same: Clerics, Priests, Elemental Masters, and even Saints. When they come traveling into your town, you'll know right away from their pure silver-blue hair.

Eerie and Cayena had lived happily with their family in Alker Harbor all their life, while getting letters from their uncles about their adventures. Both Eerie and Cayena would make up stories about what they would do when they grew up, about what parts of the world they'd travel to and who they would help.

A few weeks ago, their uncles letters started changing. They were filled by fear, and talking about some clan which Cayena and Eerie never heard of, and their parents wouldn't explain about. Cayena noticed their parents' attitude had changed, she saw them looking out the window and frowning, and all the letters that came afterward were hidden. Eerie, naive as always, kept telling her not to worry, but she knew better.

One morning, Cayena decided she had to talk to her mother. Worried and concerned, she asked, "Mother, isn't it about time you told me what's going on?"

Her mother tried her best to smile warmly, but Cayena could tell that her mother was worried. "It's nothing my dear," she said. Cayena wanted to argue, but her mother wrapped gentle arms around her and whispered softly into her ear, "No matter what happens in the future, don't forget who you are and what your destiny is." Just then Cayena's little brother walked in with a basket of fresh fruit. Mother let go of Cayena and took the basket, then walked into the kitchen saying what a wonderful pie she could make.

"Big sister, you worry too much. It's probably just another clan that needs help, and they're just worried that they won't be able to help them. Mother always tries to shelter us from the quests that our uncles might fail."

Cayena sighed to herself, and she decided to try to believe her baby brother. But it was like the restless wind kept telling her tales, and she couldn't sleep well at night.

And one morning, her nightmares came true.

She loved to go swimming in the lake right behind town. The ocean made her hair go frizzy, but the lake felt as if she was one with it. One morning as she was walking home, drying her hair with a towel, her brother came running around the corner, crying and screaming her name. Right then she had a sinking feeling. Eerie clung to her shirt, and cried out their parents' names.

Desperately Cayena grabbed his hands, freed her shirt, and started running faster than she ever had before. Around the corner, through the market and up the street, then she saw a group of men around her house. Everything seemed to go into slow motion. She saw some men putting cuffs on her mother, and her father was nowhere to be seen. Other men lit a torch and threw it into the house, making it burst into flames.

She wanted to cry and scream at them, to tell them to let go of her mother, but before she could, someone grabbed her from behind, held a hand tightly over her mouth, and pulled her behind a tree.

"Cayena, this is one moment in your life where you have to be absolutely calm and think. I know you're hurting, but going over there right now will just give your mother more sorrow. At least this way she knows you're safe." The man was Farouk, one of the few humans she knew who could perform excellent magic.

The strange men soon left, and both Cayena and Eerie found themselves sitting in Farouk's workshop, sipping tea in silence.

"Why... why didn't you stop them, Farouk?"

He smiled sadly in answer, warm and caring as he had been his whole life. "Well... It's true I possess magic, but compared to what they had out there, I'm nothing but a small fry. With a lesser number I could taken them out, but they were just too many." Cayena bit her tongue, she wanted someone to blame, but knew that blaming the man who had just saved her life would be wrong.

Cayena asked, "Who were they?"

Farouk explained that they belonged to a vicious clan who only sought power, nothing else, and that they were feared far and wide because they forced powerful healers to aid them in battle. If the healers refused, they were either killed, or their children were threatened with death. Farouk said that no one knew where they were from, or who their leader was, but their presence had been known for some months now.

"It's sad, they're slowly invading the Blue Land, but I'm sure someone will fight them," he finished.

Cayena fiercely stood up and slammed her hand down on the table.

"Someone!? SOMEONE!? You're saying that you don't even KNOW if there are people fighting these vicious creatures!"

Eerie looked up at his sister, startled, as Farouk placed his warm hands over Cayena's.

"They come in crowds, with their healers by their side. There are people who want to fight, but they're weak and outnumbered. So they're training and gathering followers."

A few tears fell down her cheek as he went on, "Your parents knew they were coming, they just didn't know when. I was instructed to take care of you after they were gone."

Cayena couldn't believe that her parents hadn't told her, she didn't want to believe that her parents hadn't put up a fight. Suddenly she knew what she had to do, and she took a deep breath.

"Farouk, give me a wand." Her eyes were emotionless but determined as she stared at the man. For the first time in all the years Cayena had known him, she saw a deep sadness in the eyes of the cheerful mage.

"What? Big sister, what are you thinking?" Eerie looked confusedly at the two others, but he was ignored.

"Are you sure you want to go down that path?" Farouk's worried look got worse, but Cayena didn't even blink.

"Yes."

"If you're not careful, it may swallow you whole."

"Because my parents didn't have any destructive powers, they were taken. I will get them back."

Eerie stood up. "Cayena, you can't do this. Our parents wouldn't want it."

But all she did was shake her head at him, no one could change her mind now. "I will seek out the power with your help, Farouk, or I will step into the darkness and ask there. I beg you, give me the power to become a sorcerer."

"CAYENA!" Eerie was screaming at the top of his lungs. "You can't leave me alone!"

Her face softened as she looked at him, and she put her hand on his head. "You're too young, Eerie, my sweet little brother, you haven't even awakened your ability to heal a single flower. You're better off staying here and learning from Farouk. Don't you remember how mother always said that we couldn't forget our destiny? I will throw away my ability as a De'Loc, but you must keep our legacy alive. Someday I'll be back."

As much as Farouk didn't want Cayena to embrace destructive power, he knew he couldn't stop her, so he chose to help her. He sighed, stood up, and walked over to a dresser next to his huge bookshelf. Out of it he took a long staff with a blue marble on top of it.

"This will suit you nicely. It belonged to my late wife. She was the most powerful and beautiful elf I've ever seen; it was love at first sight. I wasn't going to use it, but... it should suit you just fine." Cayena looked at the staff curiously, she had never held a real staff before. In her family they channeled all their spells through their bare hands.

"Are you sure, Farouk?" He nodded and gave her the staff. Then he cast a spell which Cayena had never heard before, and with it a light went around her. Then it felt as if she had absorbed the light into her body.

"W-what.." Cayena gasped, a little scared. Her entire body felt alive.

The face of her brother was terrified, he gulped and fell over in a faint.

Farouk took a hand mirror from the dresser and showed Cayena her own reflection. "It's a spell to protect you from evil; white looks good on you after all."

Cayena had to laugh, because her brother had fainted due to a mere change of hair color, from silver-blue to pure white.

Cayena was filled with all kinds of different emotions. She felt anger and hate toward the men who took her parents. She also felt warm and safe, like the spell Farouk had cast on her was some sort of guardian angel. But most of all, she was afraid, of the world out there, and of starting this journey alone.

Determined to find her parents, she left town with a spell book, a staff, and a whole adventure ahead of her.


	11. The Lightwing Saga

Tales of the Blue Land: The Lightwing Saga

"Attention, passengers! Attention please! We will be arriving shortly at our destination! Please be sure that all of your personal belongings are gathered and that you are prepared to disembark!"

The com system, a series of pipes designed to send focused sound throughout the ship, blared right next to his ear, shocking him awake in an instant. He shot upwards, slamming his head against the low ceiling of his cabin, and gave a low groan, feeling through his thick brown, extremely wavy, and more often than not unmanageable hair, longer in the back than he was used to, to see just how bad the lump was going to be as it rose.

"What a way to start my day..." he mumbled with a resigned sigh, which fast turned into a profound yawn. He stretched his slender five-foot-nine frame to its limits, his back arching on the bunk he that had been assigned when he boarded the flying ship, the S.S. Blue Express, heading towards what he hoped would become his new home.

With another groan, he rolled out of bed and strode into the small bathroom just off the side of his cabin, snapping his fingers to activate the small magic essence bulb inside it, which glowed green instead of the customary white or yellow of normal light bulbs. Five minutes later, he was showered and brushing his teeth at the mirror, when a knock sounded at his door.

With a quick spit and rinse, he wandered out of the bathroom just as the cabin door opened, still toweling off his wet hair.

An attendant, dressed in a blue vest, white shirt, and mini-skirt, looking very much the professional she was, popped her head in, and gave a slight gasp. She withdrew a bit, staring at him, for he'd only had time to pull on his jeans, and was standing exposed from the waist-line up.

"U-um, we'll be arriving shortly, sir," she said, her gaze drifting over his shoulder and widening all the more, "I-I was told to make the rounds, to get everyone..." she stopped mid-sentence as he held up one hand calmingly. He turned his head, and pointedly tapped the small lump there. "I heard the announcement, Miss. I assure you, I travel light and will be ready to leave when we dock."

The girl put her hands to her lips and nodded, blushing fiercely. Slightly confused at her reaction, he tilted his head and shrugged his shoulders at her. Unintentionally waving his golden wings wide with the motion.

The girl gave a slight gasp and then, remembering to be courteous enough to offer a slight bow, backed out of the room quickly and shut the door behind her.

He turned and watched as her shadow crossed quickly past his cabin on the other side of the shaded window, then shrugged again and turned back to the bathroom, a slight smile on his face as he cleared the post-shower steam from the mirror, settling his gaze on the wings.

It was always those wings that first caught his attention, or anyone else's, for that matter, when looking over his shoulder. Golden at the rim, the feathers, a pure white, spread down far and long enough to give his light frame the ability of true flight, though he didn't know how their current length was capable of even lifting him.

He relished that feeling, loved how the air just seemed to catch him up and take him away, whenever he spread his wings wide and leaped high, loved how he felt as if he were escaping every bond and hardship he had ever known as he soared long and free.

It was a shame, then, that the very thing that gave him such joy also brought him so much pain.

He pulled his right wing forward over his shoulder, gently spreading the feathers near its middle to reveal a long, white scar, one of many that he had suffered in his years down in Diren. The world had been overrun by first the demons, then the Dragonians, then Tarintus and his minions, before the land he was now journeying to had risen into the sky.

He looked back to the cabin door, and now his smile widened at the girl's reaction.

She had not screamed, or run away.

All throughout his life, people had ousted him everywhere he went, shunning him, even attacking him, all because he had what no other humans in Diren had, what people said only monsters were supposed to have.

These golden-rimmed wings.

He loved them, regardless of the trouble they brought to him, but that did not erase his need, his want, of a place where he could walk openly, without the need to wear one of the light-weight, wide capes he always packed with him in his small bag, so that he could hide his wings beneath them.

It had been troublesome for him quite a long time, dodging from town to town, wearing disguises, always having to be one step ahead of those that would hunt him down because they simply did not, and would not, understand the truth of him, of his character, whatever his looks on the outside.

They had suffered too many attacks by winged creatures in the past wars to trust anyone who wasn't normal.

So, despite the scars, despite the pain and the loneliness and the solitude, he was not angry with them, and indeed he did love these wings.

Which is why the news of the Blue Land, guarded by the Priestess Luna and her allies, sent excited shivers through his body whenever he thought about it.

For it was there, in the Blue Land, that people had found the Floating Stones, special stones that could float when infused with magic. Stones in massive quantities that, given power by a nameless mage of untold magical might, had literally lifted the Blue Land away from Diren and many of that land's troubles.

It was there, and only there, where the stones could be refined and shaped, changed and used for many things.

It was there that people with wings traveled openly.

Traveled openly! Not a single rude stare or bared weapon would come against those who had wings in the Blue Land, for due to the floating stones, it was an all too common sight!

The thought of a land where he could finally shed the ridiculously-oversized capes he was used to wearing, and travel with his wings spread widely, sent a warm glow of hope through his battered and weary spirit.

Hope of a home, of friends, maybe even a family, of people that didn't shun him for what he owned, even if theirs were merely cosmetic creations while his were attached to his very skin from birth.

"Attention, passengers! We are now arriving at the Gate of Alker." The rest of the announcement was lost to his ears as he scrambled into a simple white t-shirt and a light brown leather vest, strapped on his shoulder guards, shin protectors, and gauntlets, and tossed on a forest green cape out of habit. He heaved his backpack over one shoulder, slipped out the door and tossed the keys to a nearby attendant as he did a hop-step while running to slide his boots on as he went.

He arrived at the forward rail to view a cloud bank all around them.

"Ladies and Gentlemen," the com system announced to his eager ears, as other people gathered around him, also eager to see their destination, "Welcome to Blue Land."

As if on cue, the ship broke through the clouds. The sun streamed onto the floating continent, highlighting the rainbows that crossed its skies.

The Blue Land awaited him.

A soft wind greeted him as an off-loading plank slid out of the side of the ship, the intercom system on the ship still issuing safety warnings and well-wishes to the passengers disembarking. To his left, a giant crab-like creature was sitting nearby a large wagon, loaded down with all kinds of odds and ends, some familiar but most foreign to him.

"Merchant group," he muttered to himself, hardly surprised, as he looked to the elven shopkeeper manning the small carpet set out in front of the crab creature.

Diren or Blue Land, the Merchant's Guild always found a place wherever people gathered, no matter how far away it happened to be.

A little ways back from it and further to the left, stood a beautiful short red-haired girl in light plate armor, flanked by two guards. Most of the travelers on the ship were lining up in front of this small station, so he figured it would be a good place to start, if only to get any questions he came up with out of the way.

A short fifteen minutes of standing in line brought him to the front of the line.

The girl, standing at about the same height as him, looked up from a clipboard she held against her waist and gave him a warm smile. "Welcome to the Blue Land, new guy!" she said in a cheery voice, which surprised him, since he had assumed that after doing this for so long she would have grown bored and routine about the entire process. "What's your name, and where ya headed?"

He gave the lady a smile in return, shrugging his shoulders, but being extra careful not to let his wings rise up under his cloak with the motion. "Wherever I'm most needed at first, I suppose," he responded, looking back up the path. "One road is as good as another, since I'm going to be looking long and hard for the perfect spot for my new home," he finished, dodging the first part of her question on a whim.

The girl's smile softened and she looked up the stone bridge heading out to the Alker Plains. "You might want to start in Alker Harbor, then. It's as good a place as any to learn the lay of the lands beyond here. There will definitely be enough merchants around the place for you to find a map or two, at the least." The girl gave a small sigh as she looked beyond that gate, a slightly wistful expression showing clearly in her eyes.

He picked up on it immediately. "A bit home-sick? Or is it that you've got a lover waiting up in town?" he asked, and the way she looked back at him, eyes wide and a slight blush on her cheeks, left him with no clue whether the latter half was true or not, until she spoke.

"Nah, no lover for me. Haven't found the right guy..." the look in her eye felt strange to the man, and apparently she noticed that it was making him a bit uncomfortable, because she suddenly looked back down at her clipboard and cleared her throat, "Well, er, Mister...?" she prompted, pretending to flip through several pages as if she already had an idea of who he was.

"Lightwing," he replied, giving the flustered young lady the courtesy of not dragging it out longer, "Aeronishun Lightwing, Aer for short, of Diren, western continent."

The lady raised her eyebrows at that, her look turning curious. "That area's almost completely forested over. Were you raised in the wild, then?" she asked, her curiosity overriding any sense of tact.

"No," he said, looking back out over the sea of clouds, to the west, "it's just the first place I can remember living in. I don't have any memories of who raised me or how I even survived up to that first memory..." He turned back to her and shrugged again, "Call it luck, I guess."

The lady assumed a pensive pose for a moment, then smiled more warmly than ever, "Well, if you're looking to find a place to make a new life full of memories you'll never forget, the Blue Land is the right place for it! Alker Harbor is just beyond the Plains of Alker, over the stone bridge straight behind you. There are monsters along the path, but they're nothing you can't handle, I'm sure. Mostly weak little turtles and slimes."

Aer smiled and gave her a wave as she marked down his name on her list, and turned towards the bridge to start on his way, when an abrupt call turned him back.

"Hey, Lightwing!" the girl said, to which he just quirked an eyebrow as he looked back at her, curious as to why she stopped him.

Then he noticed that his cloak had fallen off from his shoulders, lying on the path in front of him.

With a small lump of worry in his stomach, he scurried forward and scooped up the cloak, hastily re-tying it before daring to look back up at her.

She had a strangely warm and soft look in her eyes as she looked from the cloak hiding his wings, back to his eyes.

She turned herself halfway back to the entrance to the guard house, and gave him a soft wink.

"Thanks for the unique new memory," she said with a smile, "I hope yours are just as nice from now on..."

With that, she slipped inside quickly and shut the door to the guard house. Aer turned back towards the bridge, starting along his way to Alker Harbor, as he silently thought to himself with a smile, I get the feeling they will be...

A light breeze blew through his hair as Aer crossed the stone bridge into the Plain of Alker.

Around him, people with short swords, staves, daggers, and all manner of other weapons, fought small blue Slimes as he passed. Few took notice of him, but he did stop to help one small boy who had fallen to the wayside after taking out a small group of five of the little enemies, and he gave the young one some bread he had leftover in his pack before continuing on his way.

"Violent yet peaceful," he mused, as he decided to take the right-hand path around the central hill of the region.

Walking alone near the underbrush and low boughs of a nearby glen, his defenses went up as another of the small, blue slimes he had seen earlier leaped out of the bushes. It turned in the middle of the path and squatted down, as if it were about to leap at him.

An arrow from the nearby trees drove into it, defeating it in a single blow, dissolving it into nothing more than a black shadow.

Aer looked to the trees as a girl casually strolled out of the brush, wiping the twigs and leaves off her light armor.

The wind kicked up a little, and blew her blue hair about her shoulders, giving Aer a clear view of another of the girl's features, pointed ears. An elf.

"Another day, another slime," the elven girl said as she strolled casually out in front of Aer and leaned down in front of him, where the monster had just been.

She straightened and held up a few small objects between her fingers. Gold coins.

"Pickings are pretty sad, though," she lamented with a small sigh, cut short as she suddenly took notice of Aer, seemingly for the first time. "New arrival?" she asked in a light tone, giving him a full body scan with her eyes.

He tightened his wings to his back reflexively.

"Where's your weapon?" the girl asked, holding out her bow as an example, "The beasts in this area may be weak, but you can still get hurt without a proper weapon to fight them off with…"

Just then the bushes to the side shuddered, and Aer reacted instinctively, leaping in front of the girl just as what appeared to be a giant mushroom leaped out at them.

It coiled back its spotted head and swung it forward and down quickly. Not quickly enough.

A swift step forward took Aer below the arc of its swinging head, and he managed to lock his arm around its body as he spun his back to its bulk, tight over his right shoulder, pushing off to the side with his legs to force its body to the side. The attack meant to hit the girl slammed into the ground mere inches to her side, leaving a small bit of cracked ground in its wake.

A quick heave and Aer had the strange creature set on its head like a top. He grabbed it and wrenched it to the side, setting it to whirling. The muscles in his legs coiled then snapped taut, launching him into a short leap. Spinning, he lashed out with one foot, catching the thing mid-mass and sending it, still whirling like a mad top, careening back into the brush, where it slammed into a tree and began to dissolve away, defeated.

The girl looked on in stunned amazement as Aer casually went back to where he had left his pack and picked it up, then turned back to her.

"I guess you won't need that weapon after all," she muttered, as he approached again.

"What was that?" he asked, having not heard her low utterance. She straightened and stuttered, "Oh! Err…umm…n-nothing, nothing at all! Eheheh….so, umm, you're headed into town?" she asked. Aer gave her a nod, and she smiled and pointed up the path. "You're not too far away. Just up the hill. The guard has been out in force lately, so the High Turtles should be cleared away from the town entrance about now. You shouldn't have any further problems."

He grinned and gave her a salute, then started away just as another few elves, males, came up behind her, watching Aer's departure.

"New guy?" one of them asked, noting the fast-dissolving form of the mushroom, still driven a far into the tree that Aer had kicked it at.

"A bit more than that, I'm thinking," she said, watching Aer's back with interest. "The Priestess Luna will want to meet with that one….."

She smirked to herself suddenly. "And so will the Knight's Union, I'll wager."

The town wasn't very far from his run-in with the girl and the strange mushroom monster. A few minutes of walking brought him into range of the varied sounds that drifted out of Alker Harbor, and the sounds only made his steps quicken.

The town towered up in front of him in no time, and a small crowd of people were about to enter, chatting and smiling with each other. Aer, with a well-practiced and inconspicuous step, joined them just as they went in.

When he finally separated from that small crowd, as if the town itself was welcoming him, the first thing he got was a bubble to the face, which momentarily made him back a step, his eyes crossed, as it popped on his nose.

After a few moments of blinking suds out of his eyes, Aer focused on the town. He looked around in awe.

Everywhere he set eyes, there was no mistaking the joyful attitude of this place. Immense bubble machines sent their creations drifting about the town constantly. Merchants and adventurers alike sat on the grass outside buildings, blankets with varied wares sprawled out upon them, haggling and arguing over the quality of this gem shard or that scroll.

A few places were even set up for specialty items; Floating Crystals, Fairy Dust, and Scrolls of Enchantment, Flame Stones and Armor Molds were set up in special wooden stalls lining a dirt lane through one side of the town, in sets of fifty to a hundred at a time or more.

They even had amusement rides! A trained bear atop a ball twirling children from a rope contraption, a roller coaster, so many different rides that he got excited just from watching.

Everywhere he looked, people were walking around or riding on various contraptions, ranging from hot air balloons to horses, even a tiger or two! But what made him smile most, of course, were the people floating around on Wings.

From simple white affairs to midnight black, to wings with golden rims, even a few that looked fit for a circus costume, people hovered around him without a care in the world as to who saw them.

He was just about to fling off his own cloak and join them in that pastime, something he dearly wanted to do since his wings were becoming cramped under the cloak he wore, even as light as it was, when a singing voice stopped him.

It drifted on the air as if it were a part of it, lilting above the crowds so as to blend with the noise without being a true part of it, neither a disturbance nor an attempt at showcase. A song so perfectly natural and beautiful that if one stopped to take notice of it, it would catch their attention and hold it strongly, though the voice was gentle and sweet.

He looked around and spotted a small temple off to the side of one lane, a small crowd gathered around it listening to the young woman.

Hair the green of a deep forest, a face at once angular and soft, a dress that flowed as if made of the wind, hiding and yet accentuating the delicate form it enshrouded. And, of course, her most prominent feature, high, pointed ears.

The elven woman spread out her hands and her voice lifted an octave, following her arms as they lifted up and out, and her lips held one single, perfect note, for a long moment, before it softly faded into the sunlight.

The small crowd clapped and cheered as she finished, some openly weeping even as they smiled, and the beautiful woman gave them a serene smile as she took a small bow, her five and a half foot body bending regally, while her deep blue eyes, the same as a sapphire, looked out past the crowd. Aer's heart leaped into his throat as those delicate orbs locked with his own.

As the crowd finally cleared away, the woman left her modest stage and instead of walking, skipped down to him with surprisingly energetic strides. She stopped directly in front of Aer and looked up at him. "Are you the one?" she asked, her eyes shining with curiosity.

Aer could only stare, enchanted and yet, confused. "Are you the one?" she asked again, moving forward half a step, causing Aer to move back, as she put her hands together pleadingly.

He could only stammer as he searched for a reply, but fortunately, a strong yet equally pleasant voice from up the lane called out to her.

"Crescentia! You're doing it again!" called a woman, and for the second time in the span of a few minutes, Aer was captivated, as he looked at the new speaker.

A dress just like the first girl's covered her, but her hair was a beautiful shade of sunlight yellow. Her eyes, though, held the same delicate shade of sapphire as that of the girl apparently named Crescentia, and she was closer to six and a half feet tall than she was to five.

Crescentia looked back at her with a small pout on her lips. "Sorry, sister," she said, "but can you really blame me? I mean, with all the news leaking in about The Lo-" She suddenly cut her sentence off as her sister raised her eyebrows sharply. Crescentia looked at Aer before stepping to the side a few paces, looking unsatisfied, but resigned to her role as a passive audience to this meeting. The other woman slowly stepped down the lane to stand before Aer.

"Greetings," she began, "I am Luna." She gave him a soft smile and dipped a light curtsy that would have taught a princess a thing or two.

"Hey there, my name's -" Aer began, clearly uncomfortable with the formality of her greeting, but she raised a hand to stop him short.

"No need for introductions, Aeronishun," she said, which caused Crescentia to give a slight gasp, and Aer's eyebrows to rise as he backed up a cautious step. How had she known his name?

Luna smiled again, as Crescentia gave Aer a look that clearly implied amazement. Aer's trepidation eased somewhat, until Luna spoke again. "We've been waiting for someone like you for a very, very long time..."

They set out at a calm and even pace across Alker towards the Knight's guild.

Luna lead, and was constantly bombarded with greetings and offerings of everything from food to unique jewelry as she strode down the dirt road lined with merchants.

A few strides behind her, Crescentia sighed and rolled her eyes. "It gets like this every time," she said in a low voice as she leaned conspiratorially towards Aer, "I get so sick of it. I don't know how she stands all the fawning these people do!"

Aeronishun smirked at her exasperated rant. In the past few minutes, Crescentia had garnered a few looks as well, but for some reason, likely because her older sister was leading the way, nobody had as of yet approached her.

Aer doubted that she hated the attention as much as she claimed, however. He had seen her proud smile as she finished singing for the small crowd back near the temple steps, and knew she enjoyed the company of the townsfolk, whether or not she was bothered by their forward manner in other instances.

They walked along in silence for a few moments more, then a man holding a bright blue crystal stopped them with a call to Luna.

"Priestess sisters! How good to see you both out and about together for a change!" the man said, letting the ball hovering before his face drift back down into his palm as he walked into the path to speak with them.

"Ah, Farouk," Luna said with a friendly smile to the man, "Still training in basic magic, I see?"

The man named Farouk gave her a wry grin, and tucked the ball into his pocket. "I couldn't very well claim to lead the Magician's Guild if I forgot how to apply a simple bit of levitation, now could I?" he quipped, and they shared a warm chuckle.

This guy seems nice, Aer found himself thinking, as Farouk's gaze drifted past Luna to Crescentia, and finally to Aer.

"And who might this young man be?" he asked curiously, and after flicking his eyes back and forth between Aer and Crescentia, his lips turned up into a perfectly smug little grin. "Ahhh-haahhhh... might this be the young man that our dear little Cressie was dreaming so fon-OOOF!" Farouk suddenly doubled over breathlessly as Crescentia sank her fist into his side in irritation, directing a perfectly awful glare at him.

"You know I hate that nickname, you minor trickster. Only my sister and the man I will give my heart to may call me by that name, and you're neither!" she snapped icily.

With a toss of her hair, which swung wide to slap him across the face, Crescentia spun on her heels and continued haughtily walking in the direction they had been heading.

 _Note to self,_ Aer mentally stated. _Do NOT call her by anything but her full first name, if you want to keep your body intact..._

Luna cast a resigned sigh after her younger sister's back. "She's always like that. So stubborn and prideful..."

Farouk, having recovered a bit of breath, leaned back against a wall and gave a wan smile. "Well, at least she's strong and not afraid to stick up for herself. If only she would show her cute side more, maybe she'd have found someone by now, but she seems to scare off all her suitors..."

Luna nodded in agreement, bid him farewell, and began walking after her sister.

Aeronishun moved to follow, but Farouk held out a hand and gently grabbed Aer's shoulder.

"Look after that girl," he said with a small smile. "Believe it or not, she gets lonely easily..."

Aer looked at him curiously, and although he nodded agreement to the request, he still felt compelled to ask, "Why trust me with her welfare? I've only just arrived in this land, and you barely know me..."

Farouk held up a hand and grinned as he pointed in Crescentia's direction. "You should pay better attention, lad," he said, "she's a bit of a tom-boy. But she doesn't show that side of herself, unless she's trying to impress someone..."

With a knowing wink, Farouk slipped his crystal ball back out of his pocket and walked into the shop behind him, leaving Aer staring after him in confusion.

Aer stood there scratching his head for a moment before a call shook him from his thoughts. "Aer," Crescentia shouted, "Hurry up or you'll lose us!"

"Ah, coming!" he shouted back. Crescentia, appeased, turned and continued on, her sister now back in the lead again.

Aer couldn't resist slowing, however, as he once again looked back over his shoulder to where Farouk had been standing, to pondering the meaning of the wizard's words...


	12. The Adventure of Neoassassin

The Unpredictably Generic Adventure of Neoassassin

"Hmm... now what?" Joel said as he uninstalled his most recent mmorpg. "Might as well start paying for Xbox Live again." Joel was sitting at his desk, contemplating what to do next. "Or, I could use this wild and crazy new idea called Google, and search for a new game to play." The 15 year old searched, to no avail. "Oh well, 10 PM, might as well go to bed. Thanksgiving break starts tomorrow anyway."

...

Joel woke up, rubbed his eyes, went to his desk, and turned on his computer, his normal routine for non-school days. "Hmm... what's this?" Joel said, as he eyed an advertisement for a free-to-play mmorpg. "Luna Online... hmm." Joel clicked the link out of curiosity.

Joel eyed the elf on the site banner and was instantly interested. He clicked the getting started guide, and saw it was a cool-looking game with plenty of features. He hadn't played many mmorpgs that included individual stat building, but he knew what class he wanted.

"A rogue looks fun to use, fast attacks, high evasion. Perfect." Joel clicked the install and went to go make a sandwich. "Omnomnom, good sandwich." The game was done installing. Game Start.

"Oh right... name... Neoassassin works. All right, so human rogue, starter hair and blue eyes. Looks good. Crescent seems like a good place to start, and I don't want to meet some players, so Channel 2."

Loading. The Gate of Alker.

Neoassassin has connected.

Neo was greeted by a tutorial on how the game works, as he went through it, a thunderstorm blacked out his computer for a split second and when it reappeared, every character on screen was gone, except one.

"What is going on? I know rpgs... and anime... and I know this isn't normal." Neo attempted to walk away, but the screen blacked out again, and the character was in front of Neo, starting a conversation.

?: "Do you trust me?"

Neo: "So far, not really."

?: "You're a funny one. I like you."

Neo: "I'm flattered, but I don't think I should stay."

Neo attempted to leave again, but the screen blanked and again the figure was engaged in conversation with Neo.

?: "I won't let you leave."

Neo: "Why not?"

?: "Because the story... is about to get more generic."

Neo: "What's that supposed to mean?"

The lights in Joel's room went out, was this another blackout? No, Joel's computer didn't shut off. And then Joel's screen emitted a bright light, so bright that he had to shut his eyes.

"Unh... what just happened?" Joel opened his eyes and was lying on the stone ground of the Gate of Alker. "Oh, please don't tell me I was somehow transported into this game and am now living it," Joel said.

?: "Okay, I won't."

Neo: "...so that means it's true."

?: "I guess so."

Neo: "Did you cause this?"

?: "Yeah, I think I did."

Neo: "You think? Well, can you send me back?"

?: "No. I said I wouldn't let you leave, remember."

Neo: "I DIDN'T THINK YOU MEANT LITERALLY!"

?: "Mad? Ehehehehe... oh well, you're starting to bore me. I should just leave. Oh... and if you really do want to go back to the real world, you need to 'finish' the game."

Neo: "How do you finish an mmorpg?!"

?: "You know what, I don't know myself... Oh well, I'll let you know when I come up with something, in the mean time..." The character snapped its fingers. "I'll let you roam around this world."

Neo blacked out.

* * *

Marche: "Heeeeeeeey, wake up! Oh I hope I used that powder right. Maybe if I do this…"

The elf splashed some pink liquid onto Neo's face.

Neo: "Baaaaah! *cough* *cough* What was that for!? And why does my mouth taste all powdery?"

Marche: "Is that anyway to greet the person that saved your life?"

Neo: "Saving... my... life? Wait..." Neo eyed the girl. "You have... pointy ears."

Marche: "Well of course I do, I'm an elf! Do elves not have ears where you're from, adventurer?"

Neo: "Adventurer... elves... Oh right, I was transported into the game."

Marche: "Game? What game? This is real, see?"

Marche pinched Neo's cheek.

Neo: "Ow...that hurt! Wait...that HURT... You're right. This IS real!"

Marche: "Yeah, I just explained that."

Neo: "Well how do I get out of here?!"

Marche: "Through the front door perhaps? But I wouldn't advise going out there without your dag-"

Neo rushed out the door and was met with a giant mushroom.

Neo: "Eh…"

The fungus begins beating Neo up with its cap. Neo rushed back inside and Marche splashed more of the pink potion in his face.

Neo: "What just happened?!"

Marche: "You were attacked, and you were unarmed. Obviously you were going to get killed."

Neo: "Argh, this is frustrating. I thought this story was going to get more generic!"

Marche: "I guess we'll have to wait. In the meantime, you should rest for the night. Tomorrow we're going to go meet Rien, maybe she can help you."

Neo: "Who's Rien?"

Marche: "Wait and see."


	13. Boss Hunter

Boss Hunter

 **Prologue**

 _"Come now, boy, is that all you possess?"_

 _Said boy was too enraged to think straight. He looked up at the devilish elven figure that constantly stabbed him with that smug look, and thought of nothing more than to swipe that sword out of his way before nailing the jerk with his own._

 _That would have been ideal in this situation, but the boy was severely out-powered, out-matched, and far out of his league. As he wiped the malicious elf's sword out of the way, he was quickly shoved back by the other hand._

 _He fell._

 _"Ha, you really are just a half-breed monster. That is why you will never be... a true... V'Cazel..."_

 _He continued to fall._

 _Into nothingness..._

* * *

The echo was soon drowned out by quiet.

The quiet was soon drowned by the whistling.

The whistling wind blew over his rough, pale golden locks. He began to open his blue eyes and was welcomed with blurred vision.

 _How long have I been out?_

The boy's vision cleared as he gathered his surroundings. He was in a small, dark, enclosed area of a much larger wooden vessel. The wind blew in from a badly overlooked hole in the wall, the same one he snuck in through. He huddled in his ragged clothes to shield himself from the cold wind, which began to subside. The vessel's speed had dropped, the wood began to creak, and the sound of various voices getting ready to make port had arisen.

"Finally," Raiken softly spoke to himself, "I've arrived wherever this thing took me."

He pulled his meagerly-loaded bag out from between two other random bags. There was not much trouble with this, as Raiken was young and small enough to stand on his knees with ease and to navigate the semi-cramped luggage hold without much trouble.

The airship had now stopped. Raiken knew that soon he would need to move. It had been pretty simple to climb the tree near where the airship was originally docked, and clamber into a hole near the top, since everybody had made it into the ship and there was so much commotion nobody could hear him. Now that he was docked in unknown territory with no ledge near the hole, his only way out was the same way as the cargo.

The sound of feet on wood began to drum like a heartbeat, and grew louder with every thump.

Raiken reached for his sword. Aside from clothes and a few light rations in his bag, this sword was the only thing he brought with him. It was special to him, bearing an intricate carving of his name, in elvish, emblazoned at the base of the blade by the sister he left behind.

The thumps became loud shuffling and deep, muffled grunts as the unloaders drew near.

Light poured into the small hold as the ceiling slid back, and the shadow of a large man fell across the floor, heading toward the bags. Raiken kept hidden against the wall as a great pair of legs stepped past him, followed by the rest of the mass. As soon as the coverall-ed body began to reach for the first bag, Raiken leaped out the opening... right into the massive man's equally huge partner.

The second man let out a great yelp as a small, pointy-eared boy bumped into him, then quickly his regained composure and grabbed Raiken by the scarf.

"Whoa! Where did this thing come from?" exclaimed the captor.

"Ahk!" yelped the first man in response. "Great slimes, bro, ya scared me! Hey, that a stowaway?"

Raiken was also surprised initially, but quickly recovered. He knew he was in trouble, and struggling while being held by the scarf around his neck was out of the question.

The first man scanned his partner's captive, and landed his gaze on the sword. "And what is he holding? Alright little man, we don't want you swingin' -"

If there was one thing Raiken wouldn't tolerate, it was losing the last connection to his sister, even for a moment. He swung it up and forward, causing the man's reaching arm to jerk back, interrupting his sentence. He then swung back down and connected the pommel of the sword to his captor's kneecap.

The following howl of pain accompanied the release of the scarf-grasping hand, and without a second thought, Raiken spun and bolted across the deck of the ship. He stayed close to the railing so that nobody was in the way, but not too close - falling overboard on the stern end of the ship would mean a fall to the ground, currently immeasurably far away due to the cloud cover. It would certainly be a long wait to a sudden death.

Thus, below was an infinite drop, and behind was two angry unloaders. Ahead was a very confused and surprised small crowd of people, both shipmates and passengers, just noticing Raiken as he glided down the starboard railing.

As the people grew closer, so did a grassy ledge within debatable jumping distance. At a split-second's decision, the jump was made.

A smooth, rolling landing and continuous running would have been ideal at that point, but with the morning dew on the ground, Raiken's landing boot slipped down under while his right elbow and knee made harsh contact with hardened soil. The left arm quickly slung itself and the bag forward to halt the slipping.

The crowd whistled and gaped, the two cargo men were taken aback, and the voice of the ship captain hollered after Raiken as he grunted in pain, lifting his left leg back to the solid ground he missed landing on. Most young kids would have huddled and whined for a bit after a hit like that, but Raiken had tolerated much worse where he came from - and even worse abuse of the non-physical kind.

The individual sounds of the crowd faded to a murmur as Raiken's legs carried him onward across the grass, his pack slung over his shoulder and his sword held backwards, as he did not have a sheath for it. This was a new beginning for him, and he cared not where he journeyed, for anywhere would be far away from that abominable excuse for a parent.

Raiken continued until he reached a massive fence. The spaces in between the bars were just a tad narrower than his head could fit between, but he looked through to see where it led. Going to the right was out of the question, since it would lead to an infinite fall that he still couldn't explain. To the left, there was a gate in the distance, which Raiken decided had a higher chance of getting him past the fence than for him to climb several hundred times his own height.

As he walked past the gate, Raiken kept his gaze wary, searching for signs of the crowd he had left behind, and was happy to no longer hear. As he turned to face where he was going, he quickly found out that he was going directly into the plate skirt of a silver-armored woman who stood blocking his path.

She was black-haired, brown-eyed, armored in every place except for vital areas. She had a rather sweet yet commanding voice that said, "Ah, ahem, excuse me?"

Raiken was done with running - after all, he had gotten here by running away so he could quit running way, running any more would defeat the purpose. In a one-on-one situation like this, there was no crowd to escape, so the best thing here was to simply be straightforward. Besides, as a young boy raised in elven society, he knew quite well how to conduct himself in front of a lady.

"Sorry about that, ma'am. I didn't see you there," he apologized. He said it straight and true, looking into her eyes rather than shying his head away - something his father had always hated, taking it as a rebellious attitude.

"Apology accepted," the woman replied. "Now that that's out of the way, I'd like to know what a kid like you is doing running around the Gate of Alker with a sword in your hand." Her tone relaxed, and she smiled a bit. "But first things first: Hello, my name is Rien. What's yours?"

"Raiken," he answered, in an even tone. "Raiken V'Cazel."

* * *

 **Chapter 1: Crafts**

 _"Father, look at this!" Raiken held up his craft. It was a beautifully sculpted, miniature shield carved from mahogany, with an intricate design, not quite as intricate and beautiful as most Elven designs, but with a harder, broader appeal that would still be seen as wonderful artwork in the eyes of many._

 _A quick bolt of lightning was all it took to ruin it._

 _"Psh. Just a child's craft," sneered the haughty elf._

 _The boy gaped at what had just happened. "But, Father, why would you -"_

 _"Because, boy," the father interrupted rudely, power still emanating from the hand that shot the lightning, "such tasks are for the women in this society. If you want to make me proud, try keeping up with our race and do something useful! Or perhaps half-breed minds cannot understand this concept?"_

 _Raiken tried to counter, but his current naiveté did not allow him to figure out if his father was wrong or not. Then he thought of something, but the towering elf had already turned his back and left._

 _All he wanted... was his Father's..._

* * *

"Respect, kid, show some!" Rien lectured.

"Yes, ma'am." Raiken answered, now sitting on the grass, lit gold by the dusk, after being smacked in the face with the back of a gauntlet.

Rien sighed as her temper subsided, and continued, "Honestly, though, what do you think you were trying to accomplish?"

Raiken had not really thought of this, but he began to work out his own reasoning in his mind. Sure, it was definitely foolhardy to attempt to duel with a woman in armor who obviously had superior skill; it was even more so when coupled with the fact that this woman had helped him immensely, telling him about where he had landed, Blueland, guiding him back to the ship to apologize on his behalf, and even offering to take him in as an apprentice until he could travel Blueland himself without needing an escort to get past the monsters that roamed the land. Instead, he got himself into a fight he could not win, in which she beat him down without even drawing her sword.

"Well, I just hope you learned your lesson. Now sit there and think on what you've done!" Rien began to walk way.

"I suppose," began Raiken, catching her attention, "I suppose I just wanted to start early."

Rien was curious now. "Oh?" she inquired.

Raiken nodded. "Swordfighting is really the only thing I've ever been good at... I suppose I just wanted to see how good you were, on an unprepared basis."

"So I see," said Rien. "Well then, in that case, training will start tomorrow, with slimes."

"Slimes?"

"Don't get too excited!" Rien responded sarcastically, then switched to a more teasing tone. "You're gonna have a lot of chores to do before we start on that!"

* * *

"Have a nice day, and thanks so much for getting my teddy back!" waved Piellanshar excitedly. She was a young little lass clad in a bright orange dress with long, brown hair braided into thick twin pigtails, and also the keeper of the Alker Harbor's item storage warehouse.

Raiken lifted his arm and showed her the back of his hand in silent recognition as he walked away, slinging his spoil-filled pack over his shoulder.

As he prepared to leave the Harbor and go back to the Gate of Alker to finish up his training for the night and report back to Rein, he reflected on the past few months since he arrived in Blueland.

The slimes were really quite easy to beat. All of Raiken's previous experience with his self-taught sword style helped greatly, and the fact the blue masses had no limbs and no abilities other than tackling their foes helped them little against Raiken's superior agility and accurate strikes. In fact, although a violent race, they are relatively harmless as they can easily be outrun, despite their large numbers.

Rien soon instructed Raiken to move onto the fungus pawns after less than a day, and these were not much of a threat either. Once Raiken began to face the ghost flowers, however, he quickly had to deal with a new type of attack: magic.

Now, in the world Raiken had come from, magic had always come from evil sources. After all, there were only two sources supernatural power could come from: good, or evil. Being that only priests, doctors, and the spiritually devout could ever make use of good power and did so rarely, any other supernatural power was evil - which included magic.

Raiken soon realized what he was dealing with. He had never been nearly as spiritually devout as some of the more elderly elves in his previous society, and magic attacks could not be blocked physically and were hard to dodge or predict. The struggle with these creatures was much more tedious work over the next few days as Raiken slowly began to understand their weaknesses.

As the weakness of the flowers became apparent to Raiken, so did the fact that all of the monsters he had been facing so far were indeed magic-based. This explained why even the near-harmless slimes had violent tendencies despite their cute appearances, and why all these creatures seemed to come back in the same numbers every day no matter how many Raiken had killed.

Throughout the days and weeks that passed, Raiken continued to ponder this magical influence as he continued training. He had also asked Rien about it, but because it was normal for her, she did not know the origins of the monsters. All she knew was that they had been around as long as she could remember, although there had seemed to be a slow but steady increase in numbers over past few decades.

Luckily, however, they had never increased in actual power around the Gate of Alker, which made a perfect training ground for Raiken. In time he was able to make the trip to Alker Harbor without Rien's companionship, where he was able to store items he gathered from his kills. Sometimes monsters would carry things stolen from unwary passers-by, but mostly their spoils were simply what was left of them; the juices from slimes could be made into elixirs and the shells of the red turtles could be crafted into armor, for example. One of the king slimes had even stolen the teddy bear of an innocent girl, which Raiken had recovered for her, of course.

These spoils were what he now carried in his pack. While swordfighting was great exercise for Raiken's body and mind, he also had a passion for crafting. This was an activity his father had always disapproved of, as it was the females of elven society that did all the cooking, cleaning, clothesmaking, even smithing, while the men engaged in politics, foreign disputes, fighting, and most everything else that could be done in a laid-back culture (which was actually not much, since it was generally peaceful).

Here, however, human and elven culture were not that different from each other, and although males and females had different tendencies, they did not have actual 'roles' in society. Here, Raiken crafted peacefully in the open without being looked down on for it or having his creations destroyed. It was also a nice break from training all day.

"So Raiken, what is that you're crafting? You've been working on it all week," Rien asked curiously that evening.

"Some leathers," Raiken responded, not taking his eyes off the craft; it was composed mostly of tanned hides from the red turtles. "My clothes are a bit worn from all this... it is time I had some protection for the battles ahead."

"Ah, smart thinkin'. I don't suppose you know that you can actually buy your own armor in Alker Harbor?"

"I do. I have even talked to the dwarves that sell it. But this is something I can finally do without being put down for it."

"What? People put you down for crafting your own armor?"

Raiken did not respond to that, and kept at what he was doing.

Rien seemed to realize she had hit something personal. "Oh... well, I won't say any more about that then. Besides, most people that craft their own armor generally make it stronger than the ones on the dwarven market."

Again, Raiken did not respond, and even appeared to not hear it, but Rien suspected he understood what she meant.

"All right then, don't stay up too late; you gotta get some rest for tomorrow. You gonna be ready for it?"

Raiken nodded. Indeed, tomorrow he would need the energy, as well as the new armor he was putting the finishing touches on. Tomorrow, he would graduate from Rien's basics training and move onto a better instructor in Alker Harbor. Raiken did not know who this instructor would be, but after these few months of training, he felt ready.

Tomorrow, he would advance one step further in the one craft his father showed no disapproval towards: swordsmanship.

* * *

 **Chapter 2: Protector**

 _"Then, you just use the bolt to pin the leather to the plate, like this, and..."_

 _Raiken watched in awe as the beautiful elven girl finished showing him how to craft a basic elven guard. "Wow, sis, you really know how to craft!" he complemented her._

 _"Why, yes, she does," came an intruding voice, "don't you, little Archel?"_

 _Archel turned to face her father with a thankful smile on her face, saying, "Hi, Daddy! Please look at what I made!"_

 _Raiken watched Archel hold her craft up for her father to see._

 _"Ah, yes, a fine elven guard," said the father, inspecting it. He tapped the metal plate. "A strong, well-shaped shoulder plate, finely attached to the leather, and a firm, padded leather guard to protect the heart. Well done! Looks fit for a fine young champion."_

 _"Thank you, Daddy," Archel responded, "I made it for Raiken."_

 _Raiken beamed, "Yeah, and she says she's going to teach me how to make one, too! It looks really fun!"_

 _"So I see," the father smiled, with an unnoticeable hint of displeasure behind it. "Well then, Archel, why don't you go and grab us some tea?"_

 _"Okay, Daddy," Archel replied, leaving the room with a graceful walk._

 _The father's smile faded as the girl's presence did. "Well, boy, do you really think you can match this sort of craftsmanship?" he asked his son._

 _"No," Raiken responded with a smile, "I want to practice at it to see if I can do better! I find this stuff really fun to learn."_

 _"Fun," the father retorted with a wry smile, "is having someone else do the work for you! You see, in this society, it is the job of the women to do the cooking, cleaning, and crafting, and it is the men's job to do the politics and protection! Now -"_

 _Raiken found himself being forcefully fitted into the newly crafted armor, afterward seeing an equally forceful finger pointed at him._

 _His father continued, "- do you think, even with that armor, your half-bred body can hold up to such a role?"_

 _The lightning that fired was rather miniscule in power, but still plenty strong enough to knock Raiken off his feet._

 _"The armor is only as strong as its wearer. You cannot rely on others to protect you, only to do your own bidding. Now, boy..."_

* * *

"It's time to get up!"

Rien's call was enough to awaken him. Raiken grabbed his blade in habitual reaction, but was able to gather his surroundings before he swung it.

"Ah, erm, good morning, Miss Rien," he said, gathering his armor as he got up.

Rien smiled. "Good, good, that's more like it!" She then eyed the armor in his arms. "So, you really did finish it, then?" she inquired.

"Yes," replied Raiken, and began to put it on for the first time. It was an elven guard, and although rather crude for elven-style work, still functional and well-done in the eyes of a human like Rein. The thick leather covered the heart, secured by belt-like extensions that wrapped under the arms, which connected in the back at a junction that joined with another belt that held the armor over the left shoulder, a metallic-looking shoulder plate made of turtle mail.

Rien nodded, and complemented, "Fine work there, and perfect for today. You know what today is, right?"

"Yes."

"Good! Now, if you want your breakfast, you best head over to Alker Harbor and claim it from your new instructor!"

Raiken soured a bit at the thought of that, but he was determined to continue his training, and nodded with bitter-sweet enthusiasm.

"Alright, head for the bulletin board south of the warehouse and look for a woman with short red hair and red armor. Her name is Wisy; tell her I sent you."

"Got it," replied Raiken.

Rien handed him his pack. Raiken took it and began to head out, after which Rein called, "Oh, and don't pull anything on her like you did on me when we first met, 'kay? She knows very well how to use that large sword she carries around, ya know!

Raiken raised his hand in acknowledgement and headed across the fields of the Gate.

"Oh, and -" Rien started to say, then she realized Raiken was too far away to hear. "Shoot, I wanted to ask him about those ears of his..."

* * *

Raiken's stomach growled as he wandered through the southeast corner of Gate of Alker. Wisy was not where Rien had said she would be, and according to the townsfolk, she had headed off to an old well to investigate something. Raiken could have probably slain a monster and cooked his own breakfast by now, but he was determined obtain it from his next instructor.

Here, he saw no sign of her, although he did sense an uneasy presence. Rather annoyed that everybody in the area seemed to have faulty directions, Raiken decided he would go back a ways and hunt some red turtles. His thoughts were interrupted, however, by some distant rustling noises.

Thump.

THUMP.

The rustling came from the forested area behind the well, and became louder as it was accompanied by the beat of rumbling thuds on the earth. A girl's scream rang out.

Shaking trees added some visuals to the orchestra as Raiken watched the woods, and the screaming took shape in the form of a young brunette that came rushing out of the bushes. From what Raiken could see, she was rather average-looking in size, weight, and appearance, clad in a brown tunic and undecorated bronze chestplate, with half of her short brown hair tied up in the back, and the other half billowing in the wind as she ran with a sword in her right hand and shield on her left arm. Raiken thought she wasn't being very safe, seeming not to have as much regard for what was in front of her so much as what was behind.

This girl did not seem to take any notice of Raiken as she passed by him in her haste, nor did she take any notice of her loosely-wrapped leg bandages that she subsequently tripped on. She did, however, clearly notice that she immediately faceplanted into the ground afterward, because the screaming cut out after that.

Raiken stared with a pitifully puzzled look for a moment, but quickly turned his gaze to the next crashing THUMP.

What he saw was the largest slime he had ever seen.

At this point, Raiken's initial reaction was to run. Through all his training thus far, he had never encountered a beast so large - he had only recently gotten used to facing hordes of high turtles, but this seemed far more dangerous.

His attention turned back to the human on the ground. Rien had been the only nice human he had ever met, and he had been raised in the presence of his father's prejudice against them. In his childhood, his father liked to rant about protecting the elven society from the despicable species.

That man... Such thoughts quickly snapped out of his head as Raiken ditched his pack, allowing him to scoop the girl out of the way as the enormous slime smashed into the clearing on the ground where the two had been just moments before.

"Eek! Ah, uh, where am - er, who are you?" The girl's tone was a mass of surprise and confusion as she lay on top of a blond stranger whose arm was wrapped around her waist, and who had apparently slid with her several feet across the ground.

"Someone who would like you to please get off him," winced Raiken, trying his best to lift himself and the girl off the ground while releasing his grip on her waist.

The girl quickly got up and tried to profusely apologize before suddenly realizing why she had needed rescuing in the first place.

"Ah!" she exclaimed in horror, "W-where's Bust!?"

The large blue blob had recovered from its landing and began to shift itself to face them. The hollows it had for eyes appeared to focus on the back of the confused girl, and the rest of its body began to emanate a red aura with flashes of black lightning.

The appearance of the aura reminded Raiken of the uneasy presence he had felt earlier. It also meant that the monster was getting ready to attack again.

Now that the girl finally realized where the thing was, she let out a squeal, jumped and spun around, only to trip again.

Raiken focused on the slime, which in turn shifted its attention to him. Raiken readied the sword in his hand and set his feet firmly.

 _This beast,_ he thought, _is nothing compared to him._

 **Chapter 3: Teamwork**

 _"Come now, boy, get up."_

 _Raiken struggled to his feet, having been hit shockingly hard with merely the palm of his father's hand. It seemed his father had a counter for everything he tried._

 _Yet, he could not bring himself to hate his father at the moment. If anything, he admired the skill he was leagues away from._

 _"One more time, boy. I know you can do better than that, a V'Cazel or not! You do have elven blood, don't you?"_

 _Raiken charged again for a second time, again, aiming at the sword to sweep it away. This time, after sweeping it away, he would block the incoming palm with his elbow, and then -_

 _Swoosh!_

 _That was the sound of his sword missing entirely. His father saw this coming miles away and swiftly stepped aside rather than letting Raiken swipe his sword away like the first time. Instead, Raiken got a blow to the back of the head, helping his face hit the ground faster from his off-balance position._

 _"Boy, you're going to have to learn to fight on your own. You have no allies to help you and never will, so get up and learn to stand on your own two feet!"_

 _Raiken's struggle to his feet was a bit slower this time. His father was right; he had no friends save for his sister, so he had to learn to defend himself. Nobody helped a half-breed._

 _"Ah, there you are. I almost thought we were done for the day. Now, if you quit shaking and stand higher, we can continue."_

 _Higher._

 _Was that where he should aim? His father was used to guarding his lower body, but if he aimed higher...?_

 _Raiken shivered. He was not sure how his father might react to a blow to the head. Raiken would either be severely punished, or perhaps - just perhaps - his father might commend him..._

* * *

The small boy leapt into the air. The giant blue blob seemed less of a giant from the air, as the round point on its head came to the boy's eye level.

Cleaving through the gelatinous beast from the air was like dropping a knife onto a block of soft cheese. Raiken's aerial attack did do some damage, but the lightweight half-elf's total lack of mass allowed him only a small cut into Bust's exterior before he fell painfully to the ground.

Interestingly enough, the surprised slime's squeal was louder than the girl's as it bounced backwards in pain.

"Ah! Are you all right!?"

Raiken had nearly forgotten the young girl that he was now sitting next to on the ground. Apparently, Raiken's assault on Bust had broken her from her frightened stupor, since she was now concerned for his well-being.

Raiken turned to face the average-looking girl. "I'm fine," he said, and turned back to watch the monster. "Look, just get yourself out of here. I'll keep him busy."

The girl looked uneasy. "But, um, sir -"

"Just go! Get out of this mess!" Raiken snapped. "I've got nobody to look out for me anyway, so I will face this thing on my own two feet!"

Bust was beginning to calm down from the pain, but became more agitated.

The girl took a few steps back - not because of the monster's actions, but because of the boy's. Even though they had just met, her feelings were hurt a bit by his words.

Ignorant of this, Raiken took his stance against the beast once more; he was deathly focused on beating it, as if he had something to prove.

The red aura pulsed and black lightning flickered as Bust began to move in. Raiken charged sword-first back at it.

Raiken's move was rather poorly thought out, as the simple matter of weight difference between the two was the primary determining factor over who won the charge. Bust did get another, albeit smaller, taste of steel, but this time Raiken was slammed back several yards by the blue blob's mighty girth.

 _"All these times I've landed hits on you, and you can still barely stand up to it? Come now!"_

His father's words flashed into his head as he landed on the ground; Bust's blow had hammered him pretty hard, and he felt the black lightning coursing through his body begin to dissipate.

 _This lightning,_ thought Raiken as he got to his feet, _is nothing compared to his._

Although Raiken was back on his feet quickly, his body would not hold up to many more hits such as that. However, to his surprise, Bust was no longer focused on him.

"Hey you, over here!"

Raiken looked to the source of the voice and found the girl hollering at the monster, which now aimed for her. The girl, after that short, brave sentence, then proceeded to run off.

 _Stupid girl, what is she thinking?_ Raiken thought. He couldn't understand it, but the beast's distraction allowed Raiken to clear his mind and plan. He began to remember his training, and how he had sometimes focused his energy into his sword. It was easy to temporarily boost his power when attacking the small fry on these fields, but his thoughts returned to his previous sparring experiences: every time he tried something against his father, the lightning -

Lightning. That was it! It was his father's favorite element, and all elves he knew of could manipulate energy in conjunction with an element. However, Raiken's father had always doubted his abilities because he was only half elven. _But,_ Raiken thought, _what if that half of me is enough? If Father can do it, and even this beast can, then..._

Raiken took his stance again, but this time much more calmly, more focused. He watched Bust as it chased the girl in circles around him.

 _Why is she running in circles?_

No, he would not think about why. He concentrated his energy on his sword and began to feel slight response.

The girl's circle skewed a bit as she began to run nearer to him, bringing Bust in range.

 _Good. Just a bit more._

The girl provoked Bust again, then ran past Raiken within several feet. However, before she got far past him... she tripped. Again. Actually, she had tripped a few times during her circumference. This time, however, she was too exhausted to get up.

This was his chance. As Bust bounced on, he came within Raiken's range.

When the beast was close enough to its target, its aura and lightning surged predictably as it got ready for its strike. Raiken had been waiting for this. A few black bolts had escaped orbit, drawn to the energy in Raiken's sword.

Raiken swung his sword with all his might, its power bolstered by the energy and lightning it had gathered moments before.

SLASH!

The massive blob reeled back in its greatest squeal thus far as a quarter of its mass had been cleaved off, scattering in a rain of slime and static.

A single, focused stroke was all that was needed to turn the tables, but now Raiken found himself without the element of surprise. As it was the first time he had ever used a technique like that, Raiken had found that he used up quite a bit of his energy. The girl was still exhausted, and he knew the beast would eventually stop wailing and come for vengeance.

 _Just like Father says... I have to rely on my own two feet._ Those two feet began to run towards Bust. _I have to strike now, before it recovers!_

The blob squealed again as it received new pain from multiple sword slashes. Raiken slashed and slashed. However, the damage was minimal with little energy backing his blows. Bust's pain again turned to anger as it pressed itself against the ground, expanding its width rapidly enough to knock Raiken back to the ground.

The aura and lightning flared once more as Bust sprung itself from the earth, now blocking Raiken's ant's-eye view of the sun.

Being that his mouth was now covered in a mass of heavy slime, Raiken could not even scream in pain as Bust sandwiched him between itself and the ground. This problem was quickly remedied though, Raiken was able to spit quick gasps of pain as Bust bounced continuously.

 _"Come now, boy, is that all you possess?"_

 _"Haha, half-breed can't even keep up in swordplay."_

 _"Look at those creepy short ears."_

Raiken could hear the voices of his father and other elves from his past in his mind as his body was pounded on.

 _"He always sulks to himself; what a weirdo."_

 _"Half the elf, half the skill."_

 _"Boy, you will have to be better, stronger than that. You should not rely on others to come to your aid."_

"Uppercut!"

The new voice rang in Raiken's head in place of the next pound. His eyes had lost focus on what was going on, but he did see a surge of light that replaced the monster's shadow. The sound of repetitious thuds were also replaced by a momentary rain of slime, as if twenty of Alker's slimes had suddenly fallen from the sky in pieces.

"Hey, kid, you all right?" the same female voice from before called out from above. It was not the girl's voice, but a young woman's, though not Rien's voice either. Her voice sounded full of genuine concern.

Raiken did not open his eyes to confirm this just yet, still in a daze from being treated like a stubborn nail. Instead, he merely gave a moan in response.

This time, he heard the previous girl's voice from a few feet away, "Wisy, is that you? Finally, I've bee - EEEP! Is he all right!?"

"Vera, there you are," responded Wisy in relief. Then, in her earlier concerned tone, "He looks to be in pretty bad shape, but I think he'll pull through."

"I'll... pull through... just, fine," Raiken forced out in utter defiance of his injuries, his eyes still closed. He slowly tried to lift himself.

"Hey, hey, you shouldn't try to move!" called out Wisy.

Raiken felt a soft, gloved hand touch his right shoulder, which he instinctively brushed off. Nothing ever rested on his shoulder before except for his armor, and he wanted to keep it that way.

"I said... I'll pull through," uttered Raiken, forcing himself to a sitting position.

"Touchy, touchy," judged the girl.

Wisy have her a disciplinary scowl. "Vera!" she snapped, then turned to Raiken with her previous concern. "You sure you're okay?"

Raiken opened his eyes to meet her gaze. The eyes he met were maroon and belonged to a face with short hair of the same color. Although bearing a worried expression, the face was very beautiful and fitted nicely with the well-figured young human woman that it represented.

"You... you're Wisy, correct?" asked Raiken, uttering it with surprising clarity considering the damage he had taken earlier.

Wisy smiled, "Why, yes. Yes, I am." She got up from her kneeling position to better present herself, as well as to sheath her lengthy sword. "Are you the one Rien told to meet me? I'm her sister, Wisy, as you've already figured out."

This announcement of Wisy being a sibling to Rien came as no surprise at all. She was clad in red metal armor that only barely covered her shoulders and hips, a matching, sleeveless leather top that stopped just below the chest, and clad otherwise in black with long leather gloves, long leather boots, an extremely short skirt, and a neckwarmer. Really, she was exactly the same as Rien in that her sparse armor did little to cover actual vital points, and was in fact even skimpier. The part of her appearance that most made her look like a warrior was the long sword she was carrying.

"Raiken," Raiken introduced himself, "Raiken V'Cazel."

The day's events swarmed through Raiken's thoughts that night as he recovered at Wisy's house in Alker Harbor. Namely, how he had failed to defeat Bust with his own power. Although learning a new technique gave him some comfort, Raiken reflected that if it had not been for Vera's decoy efforts and Wisy's far more advanced skill, he would not have held out. The concept of teamwork had never shown merits to him until now.

 _Next time,_ Raiken thought, _it will be my own power._

 **Chapter 4: Training**

 _"I'm... not done... yet." Raiken's words barely made it out as he lay flat on the ground._

 _"No, boy, we are done for the day," returned his father. He paused a moment to stare at Raiken with a stern expression, but said no more as he turned to leave the courtyard, the grounds of their residence in which they had sparred._

 _Raiken was unsure what to make of his father's response. In his attempt to strike the head by leaping into the air, Raiken thought he saw a momentary glimmer of surprise in his father's eyes. Yet, his surprising attack was still no match for the elf's superior skill, as Father quickly slammed his blade up into Raiken's. The result of this move, caused by Raiken's aerial position, lack of mass, and lack of gravitational force, was another boost into the air that left Raiken in a stunned position for a painful fall._

 _Raiken was indeed done with that session, as much as he hated to admit it. He would have much to work on for the next time. There was, after all, another method he could try..._

* * *

Energy gathered into his sword. Raiken found it more difficult this time without the dangerous sense of urgency, but he still focused all he could into the blade.

SWOOSH!

The force of the swing made the surrounding air whistle loudly as it was pushed out of the sword's path. However, it didn't seem as powerful as before, and no longer had the lightning effect.

"Windy Slash, huh?" came Wisy's voice.

Raiken turned to face his new trainer. He was unsure how long she had been standing there in the remote area of Alker Harbor by the water tower he had chosen to practice his techniques.

"Windy Slash?" Raiken echoed.

Wisy nodded. "Yes, it's a technique that most young fighters are taught early on here. Wow, so did you pick it up on your own?"

"I suppose so," Raiken answered. To him, however, the technique was still incomplete. It required time to charge, and even then, it still lacked the powerful results of Wisy's uppercut move.

 _That move..._ Raiken thought. He began to open his mouth to inquire about it, but was interrupted by another voice.

"Wisy, there you are!" came the voice of Vera. She ran towards them energetically, stepped on one of the loose bandages wrapped around her shins, and subsequently granted the front of her body audience with the ground, which applauded with a THUD.

 _Such a klutz,_ thought Raiken, recalling how often she had stumbled over herself in the battle with Bust.

* * *

"And my name is Vera! Vera Playnes; nice to meet you, Raiken," said the clumsy girl in response to Raiken's introduction. She normally liked to introduce herself first when meeting new people, and finally had the chance to now that Bust was destroyed.

Raiken turned to face her. "Ah... Vera, is it?" The words were hard to get out after such immense damage, as it was amazing enough that he was able to sit up. 'Thank you' and 'Sorry' were also words that Raiken wanted to say; however, his pride as well as his condition kept him from uttering those simple words. He originally perceived Vera to be a stupid, clumsy human whose sword and shield were next to useless in an actual fight. When she circled him repeatedly with a tailing Bust, Raiken thought it was simply a vain attempt to either outrun the beast or an evil human effort to latch the monster onto him.

When he saw her cheerful face smiling at him with genuine sincerity, he realized that she believed in his skill. She was not being stupid or trying to kill him, but rather, deliberately coaxing Bust into his range. She was putting herself on the line as a decoy, waiting for Raiken to strike when he had the chance.

* * *

Vera lifted herself up. At least she wasn't carrying any equipment this time around.

"Oops, heh heh," said Vera with a slight blush.

Wisy sighed, "Oh, Vera, will you ever tie your bandages properly?"

Vera simply smiled at that, then noticed Raiken, saying, "Oh, hi there, Raiken! How are you this morning?"

"Fine," Raiken responded. Aside from a few times during his stay with Rien, he had never been asked this by anyone other than his sister, who neither of these girls were. He was also still trying to make sense of 'humans' and 'nice' being in the same sentence, as he had only grown up with elves and his father's prejudice against anybody that was not an elf.

"So," Wisy said to Vera, "what is it you wanted me for?"

"Oh, right!" Vera replied, "I just want to know what the next job you have for me is!"

"Ah, right, of course," said Wisy with an apologetic smile, "I don't have anything for you just yet, but I'll tell you what..."

Raiken turned back to his own thoughts as Wisy gave Vera directions. He had recovered amazingly well thanks to some rest and a strange bitter drink that he was given last night, but did not want to end up in the condition he'd been in yesterday ever again. Even though his father had always roughed him up whenever they sparred, Raiken had never been quite that close to death. What he needed was to be stronger for the next situation, and he hoped that Wisy's advanced training would prepare him for the occasion.

"Alright, got it, Wisy!" Vera saluted enthusiastically.

Wisy smiled approvingly and added, "Good, and remember to report back to me after he tells you what to do!"

"Got it!" responded Vera, then she ran off, stumbled, caught herself, and continued running. Seeing this made Wisy chuckle a bit.

"So, Miss Wisy," Raiken began.

"Yes?" Wisy replied, adding with a wink, "Oh, and don't bother with the formalities, just call me Wisy."

Her wink and cute pose seemed like a habitual reaction to being addressed, and definitely contributed to her adorable appearance as a beautiful young lady. However, Raiken did not give this a thought at all - he was raised in elven society, after all, and all elven women had perfectly shaped bodies and beautiful faces. To Raiken, Wisy was simply an under-dressed elf with round ears who tried too hard to be cute. The only thing that interested Raiken about Wisy was her large sword and apparent skill with it.

"Wisy then," Raiken continued, "Rien told me to seek you out to continue my training; are you the better instructor she was talking about?"

Wisy smiled and blushed a bit, "Oh, how flattering that you would say that. Yes, you must be the kid she was telling me about, so I suppose I must be the one she was telling you to meet. But no, I'm not the instructor she was talking about."

"Wait, what?" questioned Raiken with a confused look.

"Well, you see, I am Rien's younger sister, and honestly, she is better with a sword than I am."

"Then..."

"Alright, so the deal is that your new instructor is rather picky of his apprentices and won't see just any kid that waltzes up to him, ya know? So my role is to be the middle woman and get an idea of your skill so that I can get him to take you under his wing."

Raiken nodded in understanding. "So, what would you have me do first?"

She began to walk towards the main plaza of Alker Harbor. "Just follow me, I've got the perfect job for you."

* * *

"Alright, that's twenty ounces," reported Raiken.

"Sweet! Just five more to go!" an excited Vera responded.

With twenty-five ounces each of fungus pawn and rook spores, they could return to Alker Harbor, and they only had five more ounces of rook spores to go. Vera was instructed by a scientist named Farouk to gather the spores for his studies, and she was getting paid to do it. Raiken was instructed by Wisy to help her with the task as part of his training.

* * *

"Remember, teaching is part of learning, too!" said Wisy. "As you escort Vera through the plains, remember to teach her what you learned from Rien. She's not as strong as you, so keep her safe, all right?"

"Got it," nodded Raiken in understanding.

Vera chimed in, "Alright, let's go! I got some work to do!"

As they started to head out for the field Wisy called, "Oh, and one more very important thing." Her usual cheery face slipped into a more serious expression with a hint of worry as Vera and Raiken turned back to face her. "It's about Bust, the giant slime you encountered yesterday. I've discussed it with the Knight's Guild last night. Vera, as you know, this is not the first time something like that has been spotted."

Vera gulped and nodded.

Wisy continued, "She was the first to see the giant slime and report it to us, to which we simply called it 'Bust' at the time out of lack of solid information. Now, according to witnesses in the lower ranks of the Guild, there may be other giant instances of the normal monsters about."

At the mention of other giants, Raiken's stomach began to churn. Although he was fully recovered from yesterday's horrific events, he could still feel the pain from having his chest repeatedly hammered.

"Wisy," Raiken began slowly, "so, you won't be coming with us, then?"

Her expression was that of a mother's when watching her child go to war, "I wish I could, Raiken. Yesterday I came because Vera was late coming back, but really, most of the stronger Guild members are out of town, so I have to stay in the Harbor to keep guard over it."

Then Wisy's expression lightened and she smiled again, "Look, you'll be fine. The other reports might just be rumors, after all. So, just keep a watchful eye over Vera, and if you two see anything that dangerous, come straight back to town, all right?"

* * *

Raiken's thoughts focused back to the present as he watched Vera slay yet another fungus rook and search for decent spores before it went away, as monster corpses tended to decompose with fantastic and varying speeds and left next to no traces of existence, so gathering spoils before that happened was rather difficult.

Having done this for months, Raiken did not think much on it since it was what he was used to, but did ponder at Vera's unique fighting style. He had yet to quite place his finger on what it was that was different, though.

 _I suppose I could just duel her to find out,_ he thought.

"Got the last of it!" hollered Vera in excitement, "all twenty-five ounces!"

She sheathed her sword and ran back to Raiken, waving the bag of spores in her now-free right hand. Of course, after a few hours without a clumsy incident, it was bound to happen: upon coming within several feet of Raiken, she tripped over what seemed to be nothing, slammed headlong right into him, and loosened her grip on the bag, which then flew far back into the deeper woods.

The average weight of a young girl's body pressing on top of Raiken made him rather uncomfortable. It was not the fact that it was a girl of about his age that bothered him, but rather that the impact of a bronze chestplate pushing him to the ground reminded him of the crushing he had received just the previous day.

"Please," Raiken uttered into Vera's ear, which was right next to his mouth, "get off."

"Ah!" interjected Vera in surprise as she pushed her upper body off of Raiken's, seeing his blue eyes at an uncomfortably close proximity. "I-I'm sorry!" She tilted her head up to look at the forest. "Oh no! I think I tossed the bag into the woods."

Raiken cleared his throat.

"Oh, right," she blushed, getting the rest of herself off of Raiken. The klutz then brushed herself off in a very ladylike but rather ungraceful manner.

Raiken sat up and put his palm to his face. "Don't worry, just go in there and find it, okay?" he said behind his wrist.

"Okay," replied Vera, who now blushed out of embarrassment for losing the bag rather than slamming into Raiken. She took one step forward.

THUMP.

"Whoa, did I do that?" asked Vera, who was now blushing at the thought she might have gained weight, since the ground shook slightly.

THUMP.

Raiken turned his head away from his hand and craned it back to look towards the woods, his eyes narrowed in a ready glare.

THUMP.

Plants deep in the forest could now be seen rustling at the presence of something large.

THUMP.

Vera's face no longer blushed. It paled.

THUMP.

Raiken's eyes widened, and a bead of sweat began to trickle down his face.

Vera's eyes widened as she made a silent whimper. She took a step back.

THUMP.

 **Chapter 5: Rose**

 _"Oh, don't worry about it; here, watch this." She assembled the broken splinters of wood close together like a jigsaw puzzle. Raiken watched as they came to somewhat resemble their former shape._

 _"Now, by focusing energy to the earth properties..." Her hands placed over the wooden shards, she focused her energy and began reconnecting them. Splinter by splinter, the fibers began to once again take the shape of a small, decorative shield. She smiled at him once they did._

 _"Sis..." began Raiken. He wanted to tell what had really happened, but could not bring himself to. Instead, he claimed to have accidentally broken his gift to her. He stuck to his story._

 _"Thanks for the present, Brother. I still love it."_

 _"You're welcome, sis," managed Raiken. Archel was happy, after all, so he decided not to push the truth on her. Father was always rather happy with her as well, so Raiken chose not to burden her with the knowledge of the one who had really laid waste to Raiken's craft._

* * *

Her shield had been shattered to pieces.

"I can... try to make you a new one," offered Raiken.

Vera shook her head. "No, Raiken, I think you've done enough for me today. Look at you! You're in shambles!"

Indeed he was. It was late that night and he had time to recover, but Raiken's physical and mental state was still comparable to his condition after the encounter with Bust. He was lying on the guest bed with his hand in the pocket of his cloak, which was now damage-worn and would have been a pain to remove with all his injuries.

"Besides," Vera continued, "I can always find other errands to do to pay for a new one." She sighed and looked away, no longer able to bear looking at Raiken's battered face as she knelt by his bedside.

Normally in a very cheerful mood, Vera was now rather sullen and distraught. Today had been harsh on her; it had started with a simple training mission that ended up unfinished, her old family shield had been broken, her parents were probably worried about her, and she did not have the convenience of being unconscious this time as Raiken fought his horribly one-sided battle.

As Vera's arm rested on the bed, her hand felt something touch it. When she looked up, she noticed Raiken had removed his hand from his pocket and was now nudging hers with a familiar pouch.

"Is that...?" Vera began, her eyes widening.

Raiken was still staring at the ceiling with his usual unreadable face, but took a moment to nod with it.

Vera peeked inside, and sure enough, they were the spores she had spent hours gathering and clumsily tossed into the woods.

"Oh my! Thankyouthankyouthankyou!"

Raiken was not too keen about the loud volume of her voice, and even less at the glomp that followed.

Wincing at the amplified aches, Raiken urged, "Please... get... off."

"Oh, right, sorry," blushed Vera, removing herself. "So, um, how exactly did you get it back?"

* * *

THUMP

"Vera, go back to town," Raiken ordered.

Vera simply gulped. His words did not fall on deaf ears, but on frozen legs.

THUMP

Despite the paralytic fear, their eyes still worked fine. What those eyes saw was the largest living flora they had ever seen.

Now in the clearing stood a monstrously large ghost flower. The sound of the thumps came from its thick green base about the size of a king slime, made more menacing by the pair of spiky green leaves that adorned the sides and more than tripled the base's width. Further up was a long, green, thorned stem several yards high, supporting the orange, mace-like bulb that was half the size of Bust all on its own.

"Run, Vera. Get to town," Raiken ordered again. He stood with sword in hand in his usual fighting stance, but his whole body shook.

Vera's body, however, shook much worse, standing at an uneasy attention with a frightened face, her shield clutched tightly against her body.

Sheriiiiiieeee!

This demonic shriek that came from the giant flower only paralyzed Vera more, and a whimper could be heard building up at the top of her throat. The shriek also signaled the surging of a certain red aura.

"Vera! Go, NOW! RUN!" yelled Raiken in a commanding voice that did not shake, instead using anger to mask the fear.

Two events were triggered by the shout: it caused Vera to involuntarily take a step back, as well as inspired the giant bulb to voluntarily fire a blast of compressed air at her.

To her good fortune, the injury Vera suffered was simply a bruised rear when she slipped and fell on it, leaving the magical blast of wind sailing inches above her head.

It was time for action. Vera was too stunned to move, so Raiken had to do something to keep the sitting duck from being cooked.

Black lighting danced around the creature as the red aura welled up again, brought about by another screech. Despite the obvious danger, Raiken charged straight at it.

The reddened bulb began to charge up another blast, but Raiken was the faster. With a leap and a swing, the small boy managed to cut a gash in the lower portion of the stem, causing the next air missile from the pained creature to misfire into a tree.

Raiken shook less now as he stared back at the angered bud. As much danger as he was in, and as scared as he was, swinging his sword had calmed him.

"Get out of here, Vera!" Raiken shouted with empowered authority.

Vera snapped back to reality. Her throat was too pinched with fear to speak, but she was ungripped enough to nod, and began to stand up.

Raiken's eyes continued to focus on the monster, and the faceless monster appeared to keep its attention on him.

 _Rose,_ thought Raiken. Although the bud barely resembled a rose, if at all, Raiken chose this name for the creature as an acknowledgement that the level of challenge had risen.

 _You are still nothing compared to him!_

The lad charged again at the fearsome flora, thinking he could dodge its blasts if he circled the plant closely. If anything, it was a sure way to distract it long enough for Vera to make her escape.

TAK

The sound of a foot shoving itself off the ground as Raiken quickly threw himself sideways to evade the razor leaves that Rose had smartly swung at him.

After the dive, Raiken rolled to his feet, now in a steady stance behind the base of the flower. Energy quickly gathered to his sword, which he released in a thrusting motion, piercing Rose with a quick Strike Attack.

Vera's slow pace sped up a tad as she watched Rose squeal in pain again. Although she still shook like a leaf in the wind, Raiken's authoritative voice and apparent confidence gave her enough courage to get moving, albeit in a most ungraceful amble as she continued to watch the battle.

The hit was good, but little did Raiken know that Rose had neither a front nor back side. This mistake led to a vengeful strike as the bulb hurled another pressurized blast of wind from above, slamming the boy into the dirt.

A yelp escaped from Vera's mouth as she stopped in her tracks. It was not a loud one, but it was audible enough to catch the massive flower's attention.

Foggy eyes opened up to the threat above him. Raiken had been hit hard, but was still able to realize that the threat was now focused on something besides him. That focus was on the girl behind him, and the monstrosity was about to move towards her - with him in the way.

Despite the damage, Raiken managed to roll out of the way just in time as Rose thumped past him, the quakes caused by the massive body preventing him from getting to his feet.

The quakes then stopped, but only because Rose had begun charging another attack. Raiken's battered body stumbled to his feet, but was unable to get to Rose in time to prevent the shot.

SPLAM!

Splinters flew as Vera's shield took the brunt of the attack while her meager, average body hid behind it. She had huddled against herself, trying to become smaller behind it, and although this stance proved effective at minimalizing the initial damage, she was also shoved backwards into a clumsy roll.

Rose began to bounce forward again.

"Aren't you going the wrong way, Rose?"

The flower stopped and flipped the arch in its stem, as if to suddenly swap the front and back of its body. It had no eyes, but seemed to notice the energy-gathering sword that Raiken held. The sword was also gathering black lightning, but Rose's notice of that came rather late.

SLASH!

Raiken's Lightning Slash hit square in the middle of the base, but the force of the lightning also dragged on to mark another cut into one of the leaves.

The screech that followed was a horrible sound, but Raiken took it as the applause that cued him to run backstage.

 _Come on, get up, Vera!_ Raiken shouted silently. _I have to buy her some time to get away._

In the aspect of getting Rose's full attention, Raiken definitely succeeded. He headed for the thick woods.

The beastly flower charged angrily at him, stopping only to gather more energy for another blast.

SLOOOOPLAM!

The aero-blast dented the earth with a slight crater after Raiken had narrowly dived out of the way. He was nearly at the trees.

Rose continued the chase, but by the time it was ready to fire another shot, its prey had made it past the first tree. However, that is where Raiken stopped, turning around to taunt the monster once more. As planned, Rose resumed forming the next attack, only to miss as Raiken easily guarded himself with the trees.

All those years in an elven land surrounded by forests were being used as an asset, as Raiken now distracted Rose with something similar to an archery game his sister liked to play back home.

Morenshiot is a game played by firing arrows at moving targets behind a line of trees. Generally, the targets were compressed discs of hay and twine covered in a sheet, animated in the air through energy manipulation. It was a two-fold training game: the archer would practice his skills at archery while his partner would practice controlled use of energy to move the target around.

Now Raiken was the target, and Rose the archer. For a while, Raiken was the better, and managed to constantly infuriate the monster.

SPLAM!

One lucky shot was all it took to bring Raiken to the ground. Regular high turtle fireball blasts were harsh, and so were even measly ghost flower shots, but the bullet of compressed air coming from Rose was devastating to the small boy's body, which now lay in the forest foliage in a mess of pain.

However, he felt something besides the pain as he struggled to get up. He picked it up and looked.

 _It's... the bag of spores,_ he realized. Mission accomplished.

Raiken looked to hills that Vera had run off to before, but did not see the girl.

 _Good, she's run off. Now, to get out of this situation._

Looking back up at Rose, Raiken noticed it was charging up another attack. He was unable to move, still struggling to get up from the previous hit... but to his surprise, the blast was not fired in his direction.

SPLAM!

Vera was once again knocked back from the blast, but her shield still managed to hold up, at least for now.

Raiken was up and running, his sword gathering more of his energy.

Rose's aura churned up again, the lightning flickering as it charged up once more for the girl that had snuck up from behind and landed a cheap shot to the Strike Attack wound it had received earlier. However, Rose's speed could not keep up with the vigilant boy's adrenaline.

"Lightning SLASH!"

The large creature once again let out an ear-shattering screech of pain as its previous injury was recarved with yet another black lightning-infused sword slash.

"Come on, let's go!" Raiken urged as he Vera, who had barely started to get up.

She did not have time to respond or even apologize for not running off before she found Raiken pulling her shield off her arm and looping that arm into his. Vera also did not have time to come to terms with that before he lifted her to her feet enough to at least get her to run backwards a bit.

Between the relief that Raiken was still alive, the suddenness of having her shield disarmed, and the awkwardness of suddenly having to run backwards, Vera's young and naive mind could not quite put together what just happened. That confusion was pushed aside when she looked back to what they were running away from.

Then came her inevitable, "Raiken, look out!"

Raiken halted and turned around. He was ready for this. The red aura flared, the black lightning surged, and Raiken threw the shield.

Obviously, firing a ball of compressed air at a distant shield did no harm to Rose, but the results of firing one at a shield thrown point-blank to the bud was a new experience. The shield was no more after the blast, but the explosion of energy that came from the point-blank shot caused enough recoil to cue not only another shriek, but a stun as well.

* * *

"Well, what's important is that you got the spores back, right?" came Wisy's voice suddenly. She had just appeared in the doorway of her guestroom.

"Hi, Wisy," greeted Vera, "and yes, but what's more important is that Raiken's still alive."

"That you're both still alive," Wisy corrected. "That type of damage is no laughing matter. Speaking of which," Wisy then turned to Raiken, "Just how did you manage to get Vera back here safely after all that?"

Raiken thought on it. The only thing that came to his mind and made sense was the simple truth. "I... really don't know."

"I didn't even realize how much damage he really took until we made it back to town," explained Vera. "I mean, he managed to damage that thing and half-carry me all the way here, and when we stopped moving he just collapsed."

"Interesting," thought Wisy aloud. "Well, get some rest you two. You're going to meet the Knight's Guild tomorrow to explain your story yourself. They want a witness statement of this 'Rose' you encountered. We might also be having a strong member coming into town, so you may get to meet her as well."

* * *

 _That member..._ thought Raiken later that night, as the pain from the magical attacks and the bitter taste of the elixir kept him awake.

The name Wisy gave sounded vaguely familiar.


	14. Stronger

"Stronger"

Clashing metal reverberated through the tree-laden swamp. The rain joined in with sounds of screaming, cries of victory and defeat, echoing throughout the swamp.

Sparks showered the swamp as a sword and axe slid across each other's worn edges. The orc drove Wisy's sword back and slammed its shoulder into her. She stumbled back and fell, scraping her knee. The two breathed heavily.

This war's gone on too long, she thought, and she felt the cold biting at her as she exhaled mistily. She wiped away the blood trickling from her nose and lip.

The orc stood tall and repositioned itself to strike. The rain cascaded across the swamp, but almost as if it was caressing Wisy. It washed away the dirt that clung to her.

The orc stared at her defiantly, and with a thunderous roar it slammed its axe into the earth. The shock wave traveled through the ground and the earth itself lashed out at Wisy, flipping her like a rag doll. She crashed across the swamp and slid to a stop. Her breathing was heavier, but she ignored the aches that stabbed across her body and rushed forward, her scream piercing the night. Her blade whips through drops of the rain before slicing through leather and colliding with thickened flesh.

The orc roared and bared its yellowed fangs. Grabbing her sword, it shattered the blade, then knocked the wind out of her and sent her reeling backwards.

Hunched over, she waited for the final blow; it seemed slow in coming. Options ran through her head, her mind screamed for her to dodge but her body, unresponsive, stayed there like dead weight. She looked up at the moon, droplets of rain washed away the blood, and she closed her eyes.

A flash of blue lit up the forest, and a crystal ball crashed into the orc with a skull-splitting crunch, sending it through a tree. Wisy turned her head to see a battered Farouk limping toward her with a smile on his face. He knelt and held her. "I know it hurts, but I've got you now."

She cried into his shoulder, "I won't ever be this weak again. I won't let anyone ever be this weak again."


	15. Sunset

"Sunset"

It was finally sunset.

The day had been long, filled with clearing out hordes of moon-crazed monsters that seemed to just keep coming. No matter how good she was at healing, she couldn't heal how tired her heart was getting of it all. The fiery beauty of the sun setting into the sea did little to calm her. She could only think of the ominously red moon that would surely rise soon. Sighing, she brought her small knees up to her chest.

"That sounds depressing," a familiar voice teased.

She raised her head, blushing slightly. "I'm sorry. I thought I was alone." She turned to look at her partner as he sat next to her.

"It was a pretty long day, wasn't it." He wasn't really asking a question. His eyes wandered back to the girl. Her long hair was whipping about in the sea breeze, obscuring her face. Tenderly, he reached out and tucked it behind her ears.

She had always been shy, so she surprised even herself when she took his hand, holding on tightly. "Will you stay with me for awhile?" she whispered. Feeling her heart swell as he smiled in response, she found herself smiling too. Who would have thought she would be healed by a Necromancer?

Neither one of them said another word as they sat at the docks of Alker Harbor, watching the red moon rise with their fingers entwined. Surely, they would have to fight tomorrow as well. But there were things in the world worth fighting for.


	16. How NOT to Help Newbies

"How NOT to Help Newbies"

"What is your name?" asked a strange voice, the voice of Luna the priestess.

"My name? Oh uh, it's Jil-"

"No, not your real name, your username."

"My what?" The girl was standing on a pedestal, looking confused and disoriented. She was a young human girl, with short boyish hair, and big green eyes, which darted around wondering where she was. "Um, can't I just go by my real name...?"

"No, pick a name."

"Um... Jilli-"

"I SAID NO! Argh, we will figure it out later. We need your class."

"Class? I always liked math."

"Not that kind of class. Do you want to be a Fighter? A Mage? A Rogue?"

The girl looked confused hearing these things. "Erm, Rogue I guess?"

Before she knew it, she found herself in the Gate of Alker, still confused and disoriented. What was worse though, was that suddenly an elf girl ran up to her.

The young elf girl had very long blond hair and wore very heavy looking armor. In her right hand she held a large hammer, and in her left she had a shield. "NEWBIE!" she yelled in joy, a high pitched sound to make ears bleed. The elf suddenly dropped her weapons, then jumped at and tackle-hugged the poor, confused human girl.

"Eek!" yelled the human as she was knocked down and pinned by the elf. Such heavy armor!

"Hiya, Newbie!" said the elf gleefully, now getting off and picking up her weapons.

The human sat up, then got to her feet, rubbing her back in pain. "Um, do I know you?"

"Of course not!" the elf said happily.

"Erm, okay then, bye, nice meeting y-"

The elf suddenly bonked the human lightly on the head. "You're not going anywhere! I'm here to help newbies like you! For being all new, and bies, and such."

Bies? thought the human.

"So what's your name?" continued the elf.

"Jil-"

"No! Your username!"

"Erm..." She had never really picked one...

"Well, whatever! My name is Peri!" The elf girl had her shield on her back, and held her hammer on her shoulder, using her shield hand to give a thumbs up. This was her greeting pose. "Well, it's Peripeteia, but no one can pronounce or spell that, so people call me Peri! I'm an infantrywoman, and since I used to be a warrior, I can totally bash in some skulls!"

Wow she talks a lot, the human thought as she just stood there.

"And boy, do I love bashing skulls! Little skulls, big skulls, squishy skulls..."

She just keeps going...

"SPLAT it went, all over the pavement!"

Argh, will she ever finish?

"Then, KUNG FU FIGHTING TURTLES..."

What time is it?

"I spent weeks cleaning the brain goo off my armor..."

Wonder what mom's cooking for dinner, spaghetti maybe?

"And that's the story on how I got Mjolnir here."

"Mjolnir?! You mean Thor's hammer?!" Now the human was interested in Peri's story! "Does it have the whole 'Whosoever holds this hammer, if he be worthy, shall possess the power of... Thor' on it?! Can you shoot lightning?! Can I use it?!"

Peri was now the confused one! "What?" she said.

"You know! Thor's hammer?! Mjolnir!?"

The elf still looked blankly at her.

"You know... Thor? Like the one from the comic book?"

Peri stared at her some more, then smiled happily once again. "I GASP!" she exclaimed.

"I don't think it counts if you say you're gasp-"

"QUIET YOU! You're a geek! Your new name is 'geekosaurus' now."

"Why -osaurus?"

"BECAUSE YOUR FACE, THAT'S WHY."

That didn't make any sense, but something told her this elf was greatly disturbed, so she had better not talk to her in such a way as to risk being killed somehow.

"Now come on! We're getting you some quests, and getting you big and strong by talking to people and delivering stuff!" That made even less sense!

They spoke to an absurdly tall woman shortly afterward. She told Geeky to go kill some slimes and mushrooms. Geeky protested doing so for a good half hour, until Peri said if she didn't go along, she would get her skull bashed in. Now the two walked across the bridge together, to look for some slimes.

"This is wrong! It's basically murder!" Geeky protested some more. "Just because they're SLIMES doesn't mean they don't have FRIENDS and FAMILIES that care about them! What if we kill a MOMMY AND DADDY SLIME?! Leave it's children ORPHANS! STARVING! CRYING! Going: MOMMY! DADDY! WHYYY?! WHY WOULD SOMEONE DOO THIS TO UUUSSS?!"

Peri just grinned happily and commented, "That's why we kill whole families! Leave no survivors!"

"You're horrible!"

"YOU'RE PRETTY!"

"What?!"

"Nothing."

They eventually did find a slime. Geeky looked down at it, her dagger hand shaking, lower lip quivering. The slime was just staring at her! With a goofy smile! It didn't know what she was going to do! It was... was... "It's too cute! I can't kill it!" she told Peri, her eyes wide and watery.

Peri stared at the newbie angrily, casually picked up the slime, and held it up to Geeky. "You can do it! Just insert stabby in its forehead!"

"It's too cute! I can't!"

"Hey, if you don't kill it someone else will!"

So Geeky held her dagger up a bit, her hand shaking even more.

Just then, another smaller slime bounced over to them and looked up at Geeky, saying in a cute baby-like voice, "Ma'am, can you pwease put my big bwuver down? We gonna go pway!"

Geeky's eyes watered even more. "Aww! That's TOO adorable! I can't do this! This is horrible! Cruel! Inhuman!"

Peri put down the slime and said devilishly, "Look, we can kill them both, and they can both go to heaven together!" She chuckled to herself evilly, then noticed Geeky was gone.

She looked around, and saw the brown haired girl running away, sobbing and letting out a loud, "WAAAH!" as she ran from the crazy elf girl.

Peri's eyes narrowed. Watching Geeky run from her, she said, "Oh, you can't escape me, newbie! Bwehehe!"


	17. Tales of Raeil

"Tales of Raeil"

 **"New World"**

My name is Raeil. I was born in a dark time. I only had one friend, and that friend was the shadow. Its welcoming darkness felt like home as I fled the many knights after an assassination job was completed. When I received my payment I had to flee the world. Opening a rift between this world and another, I jumped into the purple-black haze before it closed.

This world was a strange one. Everyone seemed happy with their lives. I was becoming noticeable to the couple sitting only three paces away. I jumped behind a very convenient bush near me.

Alone in this world, I quickly realized that I wouldn't find much work. While chanting the spell to open another rift, I was struck by many falling rocks. I turned to look at what was happening, then I was struck in the head by a rock the size of a fist.

I awoke to a frightful scenario, inside a room and strapped to a bed. I felt weak, like the power I once owned had dwindled away to a small life force. Stuck in this unsightly world of cheerful glee, I tried to escape my leather enemies which latched onto my body with a grip of iron. Frantically trying to escape, I heard something in the hallway just beyond the door.

"Sire, this man is deadly. He appeared out of nowhere, the witnesses testified to this. We must kill him for the sake of peace," said the unseen man, just beyond the dark brown door to an unknown realm.

"Killing a man for the sake of peace means ruining peace for the sake of peace. I will not allow humans or elves kill any of our own kind." The man possessed a regal voice, soft yet commanding, one fit for a king.

Suddenly feeling tired, I drifted off to sleep, dreaming of the welcoming shadows growing distant from me. I would not allow that dream to come true.

I was awaken by a shaking of my arm. Trying to brush it aside, I remembered that I was restrained. My eyes shot open in an instant to see what was going to happen to me, only what my red eyes saw was a another pair of eyes looking into my head. They tried to search my mind for any emotions. Finding none, the pair of eyes backed away to show a face. It was my first time seeing a face so full of a sense of caring that I had to firm my thoughts.

"Who are you?" the woman owning the face asked.

I hated talking with people. I never answered anyone except when they asked me if I would accept the contract. The woman just smiled a smile that would make the sun look like a ball of ice.

I did the only thing I could think of to avoid that smile. I closed my eyes, only to see her smiling face materialize in my head. Unable to face it, I struggled to look away. Blushing, I murmured, "Raeil."

She seemed to hear it as clear as if I had shouted it. "Well, Raeil, I'm Kaylee, and I'm here to help you fit into society here in Blue Land."

After a month had passed, I grew a new relationship, only one, but that one was special. We did many things together, and I felt like I could tell her anything. I wasn't very talkative to anyone else, nor will I be likely to change that in the near future. I had a sense of companionship with Kaylee. Slowly but surely my sun began to rise and set on her. She and the shadows were all I had in this world that pretended I didn't exist.

After another seven months, people began to see me as a human, but I never liked to talk much, and they knew I wouldn't answer unless I felt the urge to.

I began to feel something I never felt before: Emotion. I was sad when the love of my life had to leave my side even for a minute. I love her with all my heart.

* * *

 **Mini Story of Impending Doom**

Deep within the haunted woods, where even death is scared to run arou-

"Hey, writer, this is moving slow, I'm already at the castle!"

*cough* Ok, Raeil, silent as the night, swiftly entered the Giant castle where lighting strikes are always happening in a spooky manner. The lifeless clouds that hung above his head seemed to be talking with their loud rumbling voices.

"Could you give them a break from trying to be descriptive! You're so lame!"

SHUT UP, RAEIL! ...Ok, well, Raeil entered the castle through the tower of lost souls. Using his strange powers learned through various trips to different worlds, he sensed something shiny, like -

"Oh my goodness! It's a DAGGER! BOOYAH."

Raeil, could you let me tell the story or do I have to lock you up in your room?

"You're no fun, I'm trying to make the story come alive!"

You're making it look like I'm talking to myself!

"Well, you should just go along with it then, because everyone knows you DO talk to yourself." His voice boomed through the halls and all the monsters were alerted, even the very lord of the castle, Saphars!

"Ha ha! Him!? Wow I thought this story was going to be fun, but no you just had to make the lord of the castle Saphars..."

"What was that!? So, Raeil, already looking to get banned before you can even get in, I see." Saphars's deadly gaze locked onto Raeil.

His powers were being drained from Saphars's GM hacks. Raeil was drenched in sweat, breathing heavily as his life force was being sucked into Saphars. "Heh... Even GM's are vulnerable to my knife!"

"Fool, GM's are the power houses of this worl-"

"Yeah, yeah, shut up you're already bleeding."

"Hey, that's not fair! Dungeon master!"

Colbeagle looked up. "What?! Raeil, we invited you to play and what do you do? You actually stab Saphars!"

"He he he! Good plan, don't ya think?"

Colbeagle started to laugh.

"What are you doing, Colbeagle! Get your ban axe and ban him!" Saphars had tears streaming from his eyes.

"Well, Saphars, even with our GM hacks I guess it comes down to the fact we are still humans and elves after all."

They all burst out laughing, until the lights went out. "You could shut up, some of us do have to work tomorrow!"

"Sorry, Gini333," they all murmured.

The End

Colbeagle: "Hey, c'mon, it's not over already is it?"

Saphars: "Well, Gini333 did turn the lights out, and it's pitch black in this basement."

Raeil: "Well, I'm going to go to sleep."

Saphars laughed inside his head. _That's right Raeil, go to sleep._ He picks up his ban hammer. _Sleep well, you won't be getting up ever again._ The vengeance in his eyes spoke of painful suffering for Raeil.

The Real End

* * *

 **The Quiet Assassin and the Gentle Mage**

Alas, our quiet but deadly assassin faces his toughest challenge yet. He has a date with the love of his life! Her gentle feeling, her soft voice, her beautiful, long, caramel-colored hair, her breathtaking scent, her name etched into every fiber of his body. Kaylee.

* * *

"I can't wait for our date, Raeil. It will be so fun!"

Lost in her ocean blue eyes, he was searching, searching for the perfect gift, the perfect area to spend their date, the perfect everything. He was nervous at this incredibly hard task, he wanted to please her in every way possible.

"Raeil? Hey, Raeil, are you ok?"

"I'm fine." Blushing, he averted his gaze from her perfect, oval eyes.

* * *

Two more days till the task must be completed. _Gah! I don't know how I will finish this! I've never even spent time with someone before Kaylee changed my life. What kinds of things do people like as gifts? Would she like daggers? Or maybe a staff or wand? Why must something be so hard?!_

As if all his worries vanished, his head turned to gaze at the perfect gift. A ring, silver as the moon, its smooth edges seeming to glow with the light of the sun. "It's perfect!" He ran towards the shop, dodging left and right to avoid the bustling street crowd.

"Welcome to my shop. What have we here? A young man looking to buy jewelry is a rare sight."

"Could you sell me that silver ring, Ma'am?"

"You've got a fine eye, but I'm afraid that ring may be out of your price range."

"I have enough money to afford it."

"Well then, that will be one-hundred thousand gold pieces."

 _Ouch, that will hurt my finances, but you can't put a price on love!_ "Here you go, Ma'am."

* * *

"Hey, who do you think the loner is going to give that ring too?"

"How should I know? He is the loner."

"I think he's just buying it because he likes shiny things."

The three girls giggled. One noticed that Raeil was behind the girl across from her.

"So you want to know who I'm buying this ring for?"

The girls who hadn't noticed him jumped.

"I'm not going to tell you," he said, and he left.

Annoyed, Raeil slammed his head into a near by tree. _Why does everyone think I'm alone?! Why am I always outcast in every world I go to?! Well, this time I'm not. I hope Kaylee gets back early._

* * *

The last day before the biggest day of his life. "Now to find the perfect spot for a date." _Where ever that is._

* * *

The day of her dreams. _Finally I get to spend some time alone with Raeil,_ Kaylee thought.

* * *

 _Finally I get to have my date with Kaylee. It will be perfect._ He ran up to the door. Knocking, he heard the familiar voice that sung to him like the harp of Cupid.

"Hello, Raeil, are you ready to go?"

"You bet!"

They started to walk along the beach, under a perfect sunset.

"Oh, Raeil, this is such a sweet view!" She kissed him on the cheek.

His hand reached up to where she kissed him, his face turning bright red.

They talked for a long while, heading to the next area that Raeil had picked out.

* * *

They reached a large tree covered with the sweet petals of the cherry blossoms.

"Raeil, it's the first tree I found you asleep under."

"Yeah, I thought we could gaze at the stars from here."

"That's such a wonderful idea!" _Oh, he is so sweet, even though he is a little shy around other people. He is a nice man, handsome too._ Giggling to herself, she turned to Raeil, who had pulled out the silver ring.

"It shines by the light of the moon, which is dim compared to your beauty."

"Oh, Raeil, that's soooooo romantic." She slipped the ring on. A perfect fit. _Oh, he must have spent a small fortune for this ring._

"Raeil, why don't you lay down." She patted her lap as a signal to lay his head there, and he did.

"Kaylee, I love you." The words came out as his eyes began to close, and he started to breathe softly.

 _He's so cute when he's asleep._ Giggling, she twirled her finger in his hair. _I wonder why this seems so peaceful._

The moon made the tree shine over the two lovers. The stars seemed to dance with life as Kaylee bent down and kissed Raeil on the lips. "Goodnight, my sweet Raeil."

The End

* * *

 **What You Get with an Assassin, a Kitty, and a Lot of Cookies**

He he he, today I just had this idea, and took a trip to the deadly Island of Darng -

"You mean I did..."

Yeah, yeah, Raeil, I think they get it.

"So just because I'm part of your mental being, you automatically get the credit? I don't think so!"

Fine, fine. He he he, today I just had this idea, and made Raeil take a trip to the deadly Island of Darng. Better?

"Whoa! I didn't think I'd get my way! Now where's my kitty!?" *Runs off to find Kitty*

That's right, Raeil has a sidekick now. Get reading to find out.

"Man, why'd the stupid writer have to send me off on this stupid Island..."

Because, Raeil, if you didn't go how would my story come true!?

"Uh, well technically, visiting an island in your little imaginary world doesn't make it real."

Whatever, just can we get on with the story before my readers decide to go read someone else's work?

"Fine. You're so lucky I need you."

On the island of Darng is a ferocious beast of immeasurable power.

"What!? Ok, that's it! I'm outta here!"

Too late, I closed the door! You're stuck till the end.

"Ugh, I can't wait to give you nightmares tonight..."

Ok, on with the story. Raeil, our assassin friend who is unusually secretive, quiet, and downright evil half the time, decided it was time to do something fun. On the island of Darng, Raeil found out about the treasure, and decided it was high time he got what he deserved. A big chest full of cash.

Finding the cave was relatively easy. He entered. Its vast chambers echoed at his every movement. _How am I supposed to be silent when this place echoes like the concert halls in that dwarven palace?_

"My, my, my. What a delicious-looking assassin."

 _What was that voice!? OK, OK, calm down, focus on finding the source._ Closing his eyes he began building a map in his head. Using his sensitive hearing, he followed the sound vibrations left by the booming voice.

 _Ah there's the source! my enemy must be arou-_ Ducking his head, he avoided the knife thrown at it. _Oh, so it's another assassin. Or at least some kind of beast that uses assassin skills. Oh well, the chances of me losing are close to none._

Using his powers from his homeland, he opened a rift in the air. The dark purple-black haze felt comforting as he entered it. "Now I win, I'll head straight for the treasure and get out of here without having to fight that thing."

The end of his trip in sight, he opened the rift and jumped into a torch-lit room.

"Oh, so you're finally here."

"What! How did you beat me here? I ripped a hole in the dimension to get here almost instantly!"

"Well, this is my cave, I know a way to get to every room in seconds."

"Impossible!"

The shadowed form walked into the light.

"You're... you're... you're a girl! WHAT!"

"Aw, is the little boy scared that a girl beat him? Nya."

 _What? Nya?_ Now he noticed the ears on her head and the tail swinging back and forth. "You're A CAT GIRL!"

"Winner! Nya." The girl jumped on him, transforming into a cat so that he would catch her.

"What!?"

"Well, you came for the treasure right? Nya."

"Well, yeah, but I thought it was a chest full of gold!"

"You... you... you don't like kitties?" She was on the verge of crying.

"Well, I like kitties bu-"

"Then consider me your pet! Don't worry, I'm toilet-trained," she said, winking. "Now, do you date cat girls? Nya. 'Cause your kinda cute." She looked up at him.

"I... I... I'm already in a relationship!"

"Well, aren't you going to open the chest? Nya."

"Chest?" He looked over to where the cat was pointing with her tail. "Jackpot!" He placed the kitty on top of his head and ran towards the chest. _Rats, it's locked. I need a password. Hmm, maybe this might work._ "What's your name?"

 _Wow, he's cute and quick on things! Nya. I will make him mine!_ thought the cat-girl. "It's Rylana."

He entered it into the area for the password, and the chest lid opened, revealing a ton of cookies! "What! Cookies!?"

"Nya."

 _Well, I guess cookies are good._ "Well, time to go back home, could you change back into your human form? I don't wanna carry you everywhere."

"Ok. Nya." She changed right on top of his head and he crashed to the floor, leaving a dent in the ground. "Oops. Nya."

And so our usually lonely assassin now has a pet kitty girl!

Rylana: "I hope you liked my opening appearance. Nya."

Raeil: "I think we all did!"

Wow, Raeil, since when are you so enthusiastic?

Raeil: "Since I got a new pet!"

Riight, are you sure it isn't because you secretly wanted Kaylee to have cat ears and a tail?

Raeil: "Yeah, I'm sure!"

Oh really, and the cat just happens to look exactly like Kaylee with cat ears and tail.

Rylana: "Wow, I look like your girlfriend? Sweet! Nya."

Kaylee: "Hello, you two?"

Raeil: "Huh? Oh hey, Kaylee! I didn't know you were going to visit. We got a new pet!"

Kaylee: "Really!? Where?"

Rylana: "Here! Nya."

Kaylee: "Awww, isn't she a cute kitty girl."

Rylana: "Yay, girlfriend approves! Now can I sleep in your bed, Raeil? Nya."

Kaylee: "WHAT?"

Raeil: "Ha ha ha, nice one, Rylana, now change back into a cute innocent kitty before she beats you senseless."

Rylana: "Eeep! Nya." *Changes back into a kitty*

OK, now before this gets out of hand...

The End


	18. Signa the Half-Elf

"Signa the Half-Elf"

 **Part I**

Signa sat the Light House Dock and watched the ocean at Alker Harbor. "I wonder what's out there?" pondered Signa while gazing at the ocean. The sun was setting while the wind gently blew at his face, and he smiled slightly feeling the breeze. Signa had blue hair, sloppy and shaggy. His eyes were sky blue, but had a deep loneliness imprinted into them. He was now 16 years old, living in a little house out near the Dock by himself.

He was born half human, half elf. Humans in Alker Harbor made fun of him for his short stubby ears. They were not as long as a full blooded elf because he was only half elf. No other elves were living in Alker Harbor.

Signa sighed as a last breeze of the wind brushed his face. "I think it's time to go home," he said to himself. Signa got up and walked down the wooden planks toward his house.

He reached town and a few people stared at him and whispered to each other, "Is that an elf? Yeah, I think it is... they think they're so smart. Bunch of know-it-alls."

Signa looked down, covered his ears and avoided eye contact because he didn't want to feel the shame.

He reached his way back to his small house when he heard a girl shout, "Hey, you... what are you doing?! Hurry up and catch my puppy!"

Signa turned around and looked. There was a little dog running full speed right at him. The puppy leaped at him, knocked him down, and started licking his face before he could react.

"Nice catch!" the girl said as she caught up to the puppy.

Signa was confused and tried to keep the dog from licking his face.

"Ahh, sorry! I didn't think Sora would just run off like that. He's never done anything like that before," said the girl.

"Oh, that's all right," replied Signa.

The girl picked up the puppy, then looked at him and smiled. "Thanks for catching Sora for me. I thought he was going to run off towards the Light House Dock. He can't swim either so that scared me." She nuzzled the dog and then gave Signa a hand.

Signa took her hand and got up. He then realized how beautiful she was. Her hair was long and brown. When he stared into her eyes, they were deep blue and calm.

Signa blushed a little then looked away covering his ears. "Yeah.. um.. no problem," Signa replied.

Puzzled, the girl looked at him. "Why are you covering your ears?" she asked.

Signa turned around quickly and rushed past her towards his small little house.

When Signa got home, it was almost night time. The sun had already setting when he was at the Light House Dock. "Who was that girl and why did she talk to me?" Signa thought to himself. "I've never talked to anyone in town before..."

Signa dusted himself off then placed his shoes aside. He threw his gloves on the table and fell asleep on the kitchen chair from the exhaustion...

* * *

 **Part II**

Next morning, Signa woke up extremely hungry from skipping out on dinner. It was the only meal he ate each day because he could not afford more. "Oh bother, I was so caught up watching the ocean, I didn't catch any fish..." he thought.

Then a knock came from door. "Hello, anyone home?" a girl asked.

Signa recognized the voice. He froze, not knowing what to do. "Should I answer it? Should I act like I'm not home?" he thought to himself.

The knocking stopped. "Well, at least that's over with," he said to himself. Then he then turned his head and saw the girl staring right at him through his window. She was smiling and waving at him. Signa started to sweat.

5 minutes later...

"Sooo, you live alone here huh?" she asked.

Signa nodded and looked down.

The girl studied him a little. "Oh yes! I forgot to tell you my name. I'm Lania, and I'm 16 years old. And who might you be?" she asked with a smile.

"Uh, I call myself Signa," he said softly. "I think I'm 16 too... I'm not sure."

"Signa, huh? I like that name. Nice to meet you!"

"Uh.. yeah.."

"Hmm. Oh right, I almost forgot. You dropped this locket thing. I didn't bother opening it because I thought it would have been rude. Where did you get it?"

Signa looked. It was his, he had worn it his whole life. "That's my mother's locket... she gave it to me before she passed away..."

Lania's smile turned into a slight frown. "Oh, I'm sorry... I shouldn't have asked," she replied.

"That's alright, it was a long time ago. She was very sick from something... and no one wanted to help her because she was an elf and supposedly had wisdom and magical powers to heal herself," said Signa. He stared at the locket.

"You're an elf then?" Lania questioned then saw his pointy, stubby ears poking out of his sloppy blue hair. "Oh... I see."

Signa looked down at the floor.

Lania looked at him then smiled again. "Hey, you haven't had breakfast yet, have you?" she asked while placing a hand on his shoulder.

"Um... what's breakfast?" he asked.

She gave him an awkward look then laughed. "It's like a break with food, but fast!" she giggled.

Signa didn't catch the joke and scratched his head.

"Ehhh... never mind!" she said quickly, feeling embarrassed. "I'll get you something to eat, but first I think we'll have to clean this place up. It looks a mess. I'll make it beautiful!" she said energetically while looking around the room.

Signa gave a sigh, but with a slight smile.

Lania got to work. "All right.. now this goes here and that goes there..."

* * *

 **Part III**

"We finished!" Lania exclaimed.

Signa sat on the chair, wiping his head with his sleeve and looking around his newly cleaned home. The room felt very refreshing.

"There we go," said Lania as she opened the window. "Now let's get something to eat." She walked over into the small kitchen and started searching around.

Signa stared at her wandering back and forth. "Hey, you don't have very much stuff here... where are all your pots, spoons, plates?" she asked, then looked at him.

"Uh, I don't really have any of that stuff," he replied.

Lania gave a sigh under her breath. "Well, I guess it's to be expected when you live alone. Why didn't you go buy any of it from the town market? I'm sure someone would have a few things for you," she stated.

Signa looked away and out the window. "I don't get along with humans... they don't like me since I'm an elf." He paused and touched his ears.

Lania seemed puzzled, then asked, "Why don't they get along with you? You seem very nice, and interesting."

Signa got up and leaned against the window. "You don't know? Humans don't like the elves. When I'm walking out to catch fish by the Light House Dock, I'm usually called a troll, demon, imp or something else."

Lania stamped her foot. "What? How rude of them to say that to you! Tell me who would be such a total jerk to a nice person like you," she pouted.

Signa replied, "Well... they don't really say it to me in person, but they whisper to each other about it. I think they're afraid I might curse them with my magical powers..."

Lania asked, "Magical powers? You mentioned something about it with your mother too... what did you mean?"

"You've never heard of what elves possess?" Signa asked.

"No, I've never heard of what elves possess... just a few stories about them," Lania replied.

"Elves have magical knowledge, which is hated by the humans," Signa told her. "They think elves are devils because magic is evil in their eyes."

"I didn't think magic really existed," said Lania.

"I think it does, my mother told me about it when I was little and she showed me some of it too," Signa told her.

"Wow, really? What can you do, move objects with your mind? Bend spoons backwards or something?"

"Not really, I don't have any magical powers since I'm only half elf... My father was human."

"Do you know anything about your past... like about your mother or father?"

Signa closed the window and sat on the chair. "Uh... I don't really remember much about my father, but my mother told me that she was from the forests somewhere far east from here. I don't remember what it was called, but she told me she had to leave it. I'm not sure why either, but I ended up in this town where my father supposedly grew up. He lived with my mother in this house, but one day he never came home. Mother said he went somewhere far away, but I think I know what she meant now."

Lania tapped her chin. "Oh, I see..." she stated.

Signa nodded. "That's as much as I can remember, sorry," he said.

"That's okay! You're not alone anymore since you have me right? Hehe. I'll be sure to visit you more often from now on to keep you company, Siggy!" she said suddenly optimistic.

Signa gave a soft, "Heh..."

Lania's eyes then grew wide. "We almost forgot about the pots and spoons!" she stated. "Let's go to the town market, okay?"

Signa sat still. "I don't think it would be a very good idea for me to go with you, the townsfolk might hate you too, if you're with me..."

"What? Nah, it'll be fine! Here, just wear this." Lania put her headdress on his head. "See? You look like a perfect human with that covering your ears." She gave a big smile. "Besides, you wouldn't want a lady going all alone by herself, now would you?" she added.

"Uh... I guess not," Signa replied, and rubbed the back of his head.

"Good, it's settled then, let's get going!" said Lania eagerly.


	19. Kiwi's Valentines Day

"Kiwi's Valentines Day"

It's not easy being green.

Dusk approaches as I hurry along a bushy path in an attempt to catch up with Mayumi. We've been grinding all week and I have yet to receive any food. I think I might die of despair.

"Kiwi, for goodness sake, hurry!" she yells. How can a balloon like me float at the speed of a human? I bump into a branch as I ponder this.

We arrive at Zakandia, and my heart soars as I meet eyes with the love of my life – Orange. My significant other waves at me as if it hasn't been months since we've seen each other. On the inside I'm melting, but I try to play it cool and not make any obvious facial expressions.

Mayumi approaches her brother and catches her breath after such a long run. She smiles happily at him and digs through her pouch.

"Did you get the scrolls?" asks Takumi.

"I sure did!" exclaims Mayumi, apparently feeling really proud of this accomplishment. She hands the paper – which I honestly do not see any value in – to Takumi.

I'm hoping that Mayumi would ask for more food, but instead she says, "Well... have a nice Valentine's Day."

"What, you're leaving so soon?!" exclaims Takumi.

My heart sinks. Don't leave now! I still haven't made a move on Orange yet!

"Well... I figured since it is Valentines Day... you would... have a date or something," says Mayumi.

"You don't have a date, do you?" Takumi demands.

"No, no! I couldn't possibly..." I tune out of their boring conversation as my stomach churns. I sure hope Orange didn't hear that...

"Mayumi! Your pet seems unhappy. We must get some food for it... how about you come with me to my warehouse?" suggests Takumi.

Both Mayumi and I beam happily at this notion. Food and more time with Orange!

"Yes, I'd love to come with you!" Mayumi grabs Takumi by the hand and Takumi, taken aback, regains his composure and leads her through the crowds.

I use this opportunity to tap Orange on the back. He turns around and I give my cutest smile.

"Long time no see!" I say.

I quickly spot a dandelion and pluck it. I present this gift of my love to Orange, and he suddenly sneezes, blowing the white seeds everywhere.

"Oh. I'm sorry," I say.

Orange looks at me with his adorable eyes and says, "I'm hungry."

"Mayumi and Takumi are taking too long... Well, just follow me for now!"

We pass through mages performing tricks and fighters spawning. A merchant was advertising a Valentine's Day 'flower-watching' show that is supposed to happen tonight. I imagine myself... sitting beside Orange and looking at the flowers that pop up in the night sky like magic...

"Kiwi..."

I look back, surprised at Orange. This is the first time he's called me by my name! His love for me must have grown!

"I want food," says Orange.

"Oh. But Mayumi and Takumi are taking too long!" I look around, trying to find something to distract him from his hunger.

"Hey, let's play that game over there!"

I head towards a tent and approach a human wearing a mustache.

"Oh, it seems we have pets as customers today! How would you like to play a game of 'Hit the Goblin'? The rules are simple – you just grab any of these balls and aim for that picture of the archer," says the human.

"Orange, this is the perfect game for you!" I say. "Here, take this!"

Orange holds out his hands and I place the ball onto his tiny little palms. The ball then slips from his hands.

"Ohhh..." says Orange.

"You can have two more tries!" says the human.

"It's okay Orange, you can do it!" I encourage him.

I hand another ball to Orange and this time he firmly grasps it. He attempts to throw it but it flies up in the air rather than towards the picture of the goblin. I stare at it as it falls back down and hits Orange directly in the head.

"Oh my! Are you alright?"

Orange stares hard at the goblin without responding. Suddenly, he cries out "ARRRGHH!" and releases a giant meteor attack that fries the cardboard image of the goblin (and luckily didn't affect nearby people).

"Hey! You weren't supposed to–"

"Looks like we have a winner!" yells the human. I am in disbelief, but he rewards us with food!

Orange immediately digs into his share. I take a moment to consider Mayumi and Takumi, but decide to disregard them and just eat my share.

The sun is completely down now and the constellations are visible. With food in our systems, Orange and I are waiting patiently for our masters.

I suddenly recognize the voice of Mayumi. "Kiwi! I've been looking all over for you!"

Takumi also approaches us. He closely observes us and states, "Funny... they don't look so hungry anymore..."

I feel guilty and hope that they won't ask what we've been up to during their absence.

"Well... I guess this is goodbye," says Mayumi.

"Mayumi... come to the Valentine's Day Fireworks show with me," says Takumi.

Mayumi becomes startled. "But Takumi... I'm your sister!"

"Do you not want to go?"

Suddenly, there is loud popping noise. I look towards the sky, at last the 'flower' show has started!

"C'mon!" Takumi grabs his sister's hand and leads her to the balcony of an abandoned building. Once I've caught up with them, I look up towards the sky again and admire the colors of the 'flowers'. Mayumi, who is standing beside me, also seems amazed. For each minute that passes by I inch a bit closer to Orange.

After a while, the 'flower' show ends, and we just stay there, dazed.

"I'm glad... I could spend this day with you," said Mayumi.

"...I feel bad... I'm always leaving you... there's always something I get caught up in... but you know what? There is nothing I'd rather do than be with my little sister on a wonderful night like this," says Takumi. The siblings smile warmly at each other.

Orange gives a loud yawn and stretches his balloon body. I stare at him admiringly. He definitely loves me. I just know it.


	20. Still the Beginning

Still the Beginning

"Jake! Jake! Jake! Don't go too fast!"

"La la la la la..."

"JAKE! I thought we were supposed to train together!"

"Bye bye!" *POOF*

"I'm going to get you for this..." *Walks into portal*

I'm Ashton. That person was Jake. We just started training, and I don't know why, but Jake is sort of crazy right now.

*POOF* "JA... wow..."

Ribbons and balloons were everywhere. The whole place was huge and it had so many ribbons and balloons and... a cake?!

"JAKE!"

"CAKE!" There goes Jake, running to the humongous cake. *Munch Munch Munch*

I walked to him and said, "What's going on?"

I looked around and saw Luna waving at me. I grabbed Jake and said, "Come on, you cake eater..."

"NOOOOO! MY CAKE!"

I dragged him to Luna and she said, "Welcome, Ashton and Jake! Seems that you guys enjoyed the cake!"

"I didn't enjoy it, Jake did."

She chuckled and said, "I welcome you, two warriors who decided to help me protect Blue Land! Welcome to Alker Harbor! This place is protected by me so there aren't any monsters here."

"Oh OK, first things first, what's going on here?"

"I forgot to tell you! Today is Blue Land's birthday! Warriors from around the world have protected this land for a year already, and this year, you two will join those warriors. Train well and help me protect Blue Land, OK?"

"Sure!"

Jake muttered, "WELL... seems like you two are having fun talking! I'll be going over there to eat some cake!"

I grabbed him and said, "No, you're not. We're going training."

"But... but... I only had a little bit!"

"Shush! Let's go!" I walked into the portal while dragging Jake inside.

When I got to the Gate of Alker, I went to Rien.

"Man, she's pretty."

"Shush, Jake, let me do the talking."

I went to her and said, "Hello! I believe you're Rien, right? I'm Ashton and this is," I grabbed Jake and continued, "Jake."

"Oh, it's you guys! Luna told me about you! I want you two to help me kill some Slimes and Fungus Pawns for me, OK? It should be easy."

"No problem." I dragged Jake away from Rein before he could say anything.

"Grab your sword, we're going hunting."

"But I hadn't talked to her yet!"

I took out my sword, pointed it at him, and said, "We're hunting!"

"OK, OK, fine..."

I went to a Slime and slashed it, piece of cake!

"ASHTON! THAT THING ATE MY SWORD!"

I glared at him and mumbled, "I wonder why Luna even picked you as a warrior..."

I slashed the Slime and it coughed out the sword.

"Be more careful next time!"

After we finished with all of the quests, (which took a long time because of Jake) we went back to Luna.

"Hello Luna. We've finished all of the quests Rien told us to do."

"Good, that's good. There's this monster that has been threatening Blue Land. It is very strong and you're going to need more people to fight this monster. It's your job to kill it with other people, do you understand? This monster is called Tarintus."

"Yes, we will try our best."

After talking to Luna, I turned around to talk to Jake. "Hey, Jake..."

He was gone.

"JAKE!"

I looked around, and there he was, munching the cake.

"Unbelievable... What's this?"

I saw this beautiful green ribbon lying on the floor. I remembered that I saw some of these while I was finishing the quests.

"There it is! Thank you so much!"

"Huh? What? Oh, this is yours?"

It was a really cute girl, she came up to me. She was a mage. And did I mention she was cute?

"Thank you so much! That's the last one that I need to make a pouch!" *Constructs* CONGRATULATIONS! YOU GOT A FRAGRANT POUCH *Converts* CONGRATULATIONS! YOU GOT RICE CAKE SOUP x10! "This sucks... I want a permanent wing..."

"Excuse me, I'm new here, what exactly is this?"

"This? This is a Green Ribbon! Collect these ribbons and construct them into the pouch like I did, and then convert them into something special! It's really awesome!"

"Wow, sounds neat."

"My name is Alyson, how about you?"

"Ashton, and that guy over there eating the cake is my partner, Jake."

She smiled, "Nice to meet you!"

"So, do you want to train with us?"

"Sure!"

I went to grab Jake again, "This is Alyson, and she's going to train with us from now on."

Jake stared at her, and immediately said, "HI, ALYSON! I'M..."

"Jake, yes, I know. Can we get to training now?"

I replied, "Sure, unless SOMEONE wants to stay here and eat cake."

"Nope! I'm not going to stay here and eat cake and not train! Who would?"

I sighed, "Let's go..."

Weeks passed, Alyson, Jake and I leveled, completing quests together, and talking to each other. All of us joined the same guild and met more friends. We all became strong, and the next thing we know, it is time to fight Tarintus.

"Come on everyone, let's get ready, Luna said it would come out in a couple of hours! We got to hurry!"

Alyson came and said, "How slow can Jake get?"

"Slower than forever."

"Hey! I'm not that slow," Jake mumbled. "In fact, I'm the fastest at times!"

*Cough* "Right..." *Cough*

"Let's move, move, move!"

We ran along to fight Tarintus.

RARRRRRR!

"There's Tarintus! Let's go!" We all charged at Tarintus.

RARRRRR! It knocked us all backward.

"It's useless! We're all too weak!"

"Don't give up!"

"ATTACK!" *BAM!*

RARRRRR!

"It's getting weak! Everyone give it a final blow!"

"Ready? 1, 2, 3!" *BAM!*

RARRRRR! Tarintus fell down! We've won!

"YEAH!"

"WOO!"

"Great job everyone!"

Alyson, Jake and I went back to Alker Harbor.

"LUNA! LUNA! LUNA! WE'VE WON!"

"What did you say, Ashton?"

"We've beaten Tarintus!"

She smiled, "Thank you so much, Ashton! You are one of the legend warriors!"

All of you would think this is the end, but no, it's not, because... RARRRRR!

It is still the beginning.


	21. Last Date

Last Date

Aya took a deep breath of air, enjoying the importance of this day. Sitting in Nera's fountain square, she waited patiently for him to arrive. Oh, when is he ever gonna get here? she asked herself. He can't forget what day it is today, can he? She sat on the bench in doubt, her golden hair flowing back and forth as she bobbed her head side to side. How much longer?

Suddenly, the world went dark.

Someone was covering her eyes.

"Guess who."

Aya thought over her answer carefully. "A bear?"

She heard laughter right behind her. "Close enough," Daniel said casually, "but wrong! It's Daniel." He eased his grip on her face and hopped over the bench to sit with her. "So, am I late?"

"Just barely." How could she have doubted he would come? "A bit longer and I would've whopped you with this wizardly wand."

"And risk breaking it?"

"I'd take my chances against that dense head of yours."

He chuckled, trying to hold in his amusement. "Touche, but you're not here just to bash my head in, are you?"

"Course not! It's an option, but I'm here because you asked me," Aya tried to say seriously, but she couldn't hold a few giggles in. No matter how badly she talked to him, he never seemed to notice.

He stood up and stretched his arm towards the sky, "Well, since we're here, we might as well enjoy our date."

"Might as well," Aya agreed.

* * *

Daniel brought Aya to a mysterious place in Alker Harbor, a place most people tend to ignore, right behind the local fishers.

"So where are we?" Aya had never been here before. They were past the buildings, past the market, and even past the lake.

"We are in a special place, a restaurant," Daniel assured her.

"In the back woods?"

He grinned at her with his big goofy smile, "Only if you know what to shout." He leaned in and whispered in her ear.

A grin slowly spread across Aya's face. She called out the special words.

"Chef's delight please!"

Immediately, Lunarians in chef costumes popped out from behind the trees! They set up a table right on the spot, and invited the couple over.

"I told you, all you need are the right words."

They sat and dined on several dishes; slime salad, bear meat, even fried fish!

Aya looked at Daniel and smiled, showing her gratitude for him bringing her here. He just stared blankly into his basilisk steak.

Annoyed, she kicked him under the table.

"What are you thinking about," she said with an innocent look, "that's so important for you to ignore your date?"

Holding his knee, he replied, "Just thinking what we should do next."

"Please, lead the way."

* * *

Slime popping, a game where one keeps smashing slimes one by one until time runs out, is Blueland's finest festival game. Depending on how many slimes you pop, you get a prize, ranging from a slime keychain to a Bust plushie.

"Time's up! Put down your hammers!" the infantryman called out to the players, "I said put them down!"

Aya eagerly waits to hear the prize winners. Did Daniel do a good job?

"First place, Daniel, with seventy-eight slimes smashed! You win the Bust Plush!"

He won, he really won!

Daniel retrieved his prize and ran to Aya, his arms out to hug her.

Instead, she gets plush shoved in her face. You can't hug with a giant plushie!

Regardless, he tried as hard as he could to reach her over the oversized toy.

"St-mm-off-et, sto-mph!" (translation: Stop it, stop!)

"Noth unshil Iresh shu!" (translation: Not until I reach you!)

Despite several failed attempts, he finally found her hands and held them, making it seem as though the two were hugging a giant slime.

They fell down after Daniel stumbled, and he was soon under the plush, with Aya on top.

"Now that's settled." She slipped out of his hands and brushed her fingers through her hair. "Where to next?"

* * *

Daniel and Aya were back at Nera's fountain, leaning on the base of the fountain, so water could gently land on them.

Daniel broke the calm silence, "You know, this is our last date."

Aya looked as if she had just been hit with a mace. "Our last date."

She just sat there, looking towards the ground. Her golden eyes were now dull, their usual liveliness gone. All that was left were words of sorrow.

"Don't think of it like that, Aya," Daniel tried to reason with her, "I didn't ask you here just for you to be sad."

Aya fixed her gaze on Daniel, angry at him for not telling her sooner. How could he leave her now? Today was their anniversary! The day that they met, right here, at Nera's fountain square.

"I'm not just sad, I'm furious! All this time we spent together... all the memories we shared... Why go? Why now, of all times..."

Daniel couldn't tell her, not yet anyways. He remained silent, being stabbed by her words. Pain wrapped around his heart as she went on, about the time they protected Farouk's apprentice, the time they won their first war, the time when they first met. How long must he endure this?

"Please... just... just stop..." He ran off, turning at the corner.

Aya couldn't comprehend what was happening. He was leaving her?

Not without a whack to his dense head. She ran after him, catching glimpses of him as she passed each corner, close, yet so far. Where was he going?

Aya was out of breath, tears were streaming down her face. She wanted to stop, but something in her told her to follow.

Soon she could not run any longer, but she could see that he couldn't too. He was kneeling, just waiting for her to catch up.

Aya slowly walked towards Daniel, her wand in both hands, ready to whack him. She was breathing hard, and so was he.

Aya raised her wand high, ready to bring it down on his thick, dense head. But before she could raise it to full height, Daniel asked, "Do you know why this was our last date?"

Thinking that this was a last attempt to placate her, she gave it a chance. "Why?"

Daniel raised his head with a humongous grin on his face. "Because now we have to start our honeymoon."

Those words utterly confused her. She dropped her wand, and just stared at him with hopeful eyes. Daniel rose, pulled out a small box from his pocket and asked, "Will you marry me?"

Suddenly, the street light turned on, and the truth was revealed. Daniel had led her to a wedding, her wedding. The chapel in Nera was full with friends, with guildmates, even the infantryman who gave Daniel the plushie was there.

It was a set-up.

Tears ran down her cheeks, out of relief that he wasn't leaving her, and joy that he had proposed. She let out a happy sort of laughter, surprised that he had wanted to tell her this way.

"Yes," she said happily.


	22. Only in Dreams

Only in Dreams

The sun was beginning to set on the horizon, the sky was a brilliant orange fading to a subtle purple. The first stars began to shine in the sky, signifying that the night was approaching. A subtle breeze blew past me every few seconds, the leaves rustling in its wake, and the water dripped gently to the ground from the afternoon rain. I walked along an old muddy path, carved by the footsteps of a hundred people before me. Over my shoulder a heavy bag hung, holding my rewards for today's adventure. In the near distance I could see the lights switching on in the town, brightening the darkening sky.

"Excuse me!" A voice shouted out from behind me. "You're an archer, right?" It was a boy, a human boy no less. His eyes were the most amazing shade of blue I'd ever seen. In his hand he held a staff, he was a mage. "Don't mean to bother you, but could you lend me a hand?"

"Sure. What can I help you with?" I replied with a smile. Suddenly he grabbed my hand, whisking my off my feet. We fled back down the path I'd just spent so long walking. "Wait! Where are we going?" I began to panic, where was he taking me? The further down the path we ran, the more I began to regret agreeing to help.

"Just a little further!" He told me, while still running ahead. He had the most amazing smile, so cute, so charming, the gentle look in his eyes reassured me. "We're here." He pointed towards a massive tree. "You see that bag up there? Well... that's mine. Seeing your bow, I assumed you could shoot it down." He grinned and rubbed the back of his neck. "Don't ask how it got up there."

"Ok!" I couldn't help but be confused and amused at the same time. How did he get his bag up there? I wondered, as I lifted my bow and took aim.

"The way you hold that bow is amazing," he commented, and I missed my shot. "Ack, sorry!"

I laughed. "It's ok. Just give me a moment to try again."

"Ok. I'll be good." He winked at me as I took aim once again.

I pulled back the arrow and fired. It flew with such speed and grace as it sliced straight through the branch, sending the bag tumbling to the ground. "There. Hope I didn't damage anything!"

As I spoke, the mage ran over to his bag. "Good, it's still fine." He smiled as he pulled out the most amazing crystal I had ever seen.

"It's beautiful!" I whispered as I approached him. The crystal was glowing in the night, reflecting what little light there was left.

"Just like you." He turned and faced me. Did he really just say what I think he did? "I've been watching you for a while now. We live in the same town, we went to the same school, but I've never had the courage to speak to you until now." He looked away shyly as his face began to turn red. "I noticed you loved gemstones, so I spent weeks trying to find this, for you."

At that moment I recognized him, he was the boy who lived down the road from me. We had spoken but a few times, his father owned a pretty large farm. I'd passed by him thinking he was quite cute, all the other girls in town seemed to think so too. But I'd always been so dedicated to helping my family, I didn't think about myself, or my feelings. Suddenly I felt his warm hands holding mine as he placed the gem onto my palm.

"I..." I was at a complete loss for words.

He placed his finger on my lips, whispering under his breath, "Shush."

This was the guy all the girls dreamed of, and he wanted me? I didn't understand. My heart began to clench up inside my chest, I could feel its every beat, and my face turned red.

Then he planted a gentle kiss on my lips. I could feel tears come to my eyes. I couldn't believe this was happening; I was far from the most beautiful girl in town, and I was such a tom-boy, always out working, grinding away in the fields. But he loved me. I could feel it as I wrapped my arms around him.

This was the kind of moment that only happened in my dreams, and I never wanted it to end.


	23. The Miraculous Crystal Ball

Luna Legends: The Miraculous Crystal Ball

It was a hot sunny day, when it happened. It was a meeting that never meant to be…

Farouk, one of the most talented Mages of the Magician's League, was on expedition. He went through the yet-unknown fields, forests and swamps in Blueland. He rarely went alone, usually he was accompanied by Wiff and Tierre as he searched the lands for the legendary treasures of the Dragonians.

This day, he decided to explore one of the darkest parts of Blueland, the Moon Blind Swamp.

The swampy air was almost stifling Farouk and his companions when they reached the Lamia's Den, the ruins of a Draconian temple.

While Wiff and Tierre fought off the Lamias, Farouk snuck into the ruins. While from the outside it looked like a rather small temple, inside some stairs led down to a much bigger altar room. It was quite damp down there, and way darker than outside; only a small ray of light shone through a hole in the ceiling. It brightened the room around the altar. Farouk stepped further in when he got used to the darkness. The sound of his slow steps echoed from the walls while he tried to imagine the temple's former beauty.

When he came closer to the altar itself, he saw something glittering in the light. He couldn't tell what it was though, until he stood next to it and took it from its base.

"Indeed, it is the Draconian's Crystal Ball, a source of great magical powers!" he whispered, astonished.

The thing he held was a crystal necklace with a clear light blue pendant. He thought of putting it on, but just then a quake made the ruin tremble.

Farouk looked up at the ceiling, and watched as sand and pieces of stone fell to the floor. He quickly cast speed and barrier buffs on himself, then rushed out. The ruin collapsed right behind him.

Instead of using the way he came in, he had used an exit in the opposite direction, and found himself in a clearing, between many weird-looking trees. It was almost like they had faces and were staring at him.

As Farouk started looking around, someone behind the trees noticed his presence. Her eyes were like gold, her hair like silver, and her skin like bronze.

She was living so far from all humans; she thought she could live in peace and exist here alone, without being hunted further. Sometimes she dreamed of her time as an ordinary girl, till the son of a demon king met her by chance and fell for her. She didn't return his feelings, but the demon king found out about his son's love for her, and cursed her. Now she was a half-snake girl. No one in the world would ever accept her the way she was now.

"It has been very long since I saw a human being around," she thought, still observing Farouk.

He turned around and tried to guess which way he had to go to get back to Wiff and Tierre, but just when he thought he had found the right direction, he saw something shiny behind one of the weird-faced trees.

"Oh no, he saw me!" the snake girl thought. She tried to retreat, but Farouk was faster.

When he saw the snake girl he was about to draw his wand, but seeing she wasn't going to attack, he stopped.

"What are you?" he asked cautiously.

"Don't look at me, leave me alone," she answered in a timid voice.

Now he noticed that she was bigger than him, and she was different from the Lamias outside the temple.

She looked up. "Why don't you leave me alone?" she asked.

"Something is telling me not to. I don't know why."

She said nothing.

"What's your name?" he asked after some moments of silence.

She tried not to look in his eyes. "Kierra. And you?"


	24. Chased by Monsters

"Chased by Monsters"

Well, this story happened when I first came to Blue Land, when I got chased by a couple of slimes right after I just arrived. All I had was a knife with me, but I thought I was ready to fight. Only then I was overwhelmed by at least 20 slimes, so I ran.

After a while, I stopped to catch my breath and to check the map that is given to every person arriving in Blue Land, and I realized that I had run as far as Moon Blind Forest.

When I turned around, I realized that what seemed like every creature from Alker Harbor to Tarintus was chasing me! I then learned my first lesson upon reaching Blue Land: monsters get angry very easily for no reason at humans or elves.

"HEEEEEEEEEEEEELP! I'M BEING CHASED BY A HORDE OF VERY ANGRY MONSTERS!" I screamed.

After a while, my screaming seemed to attract MORE monsters to the vicinity. So then I thought I was going to die, until I ran into something very hard.

"Owwwwwww..." I exclaimed while stars danced across my eyes.

"Hey watch it, kid! You almost dented my armor!" said a deep voice.

"Mommy? Is that you?" I said, still a little dazed.

I was then struck over the head with what I thought was a giant rock.

"No, you idiot! I'm not your mother! I'm the famous warrior, Jacob!" said the deep voice again.

Then I heard another quieter voice. "More like infamous..."

"HEY! BE QUIET, DAVID! DO YOU WANT A PIECE OF ME?!" The sounds of a scuffle broke out.

After a while, I was lifted back up on my feet, and I heard another voice that sounded like someone my age.

"Ignore Jacob and David, they're always like that. My name is Elena, what's yours?" she whispered, making sure neither Jacob or David heard her.

It took a little bit for the headache, from both running into Jacob and being punched by him, to clear up enough that I could see who was talking.

Jacob was a burly human with a permanent scowl and a small beard, while David was a lithe elf with a small mischievous look in his eyes. Elena was an elf girl with a kind look on her face.

"Uhhh... my name is Cranor," I said, kinda dumbfounded at how much dust David and Jacob were kicking up while fighting.

"Hmmm... nice name, nice to meet you. Now... weren't you yelling about something earlier?" Elena said a little sternly.

"Oh right! Hey Jacob! David! A horde of angry monsters is coming after me!" I exclaimed.

Jacob and David immediately stopped fighting. "Okay, we'll take care of it," said Jacob, running towards the trees.

Then Jacob tripped and fell flat on his face, totally ruining the moment. Everyone, including the monsters, was silent.


	25. Dreaming of Fate

"Dreaming of Fate"

I lie in a lush green meadow, the sun beating down on my face, and wonder if he was meant to be mine.

I had a dream last night, a wonderful dream, that I would remember for the rest of my life. The dream was as clear as the sky to me. I could not think of anything else at all, but the beautiful, loving person in the dream.

I fall back asleep in the warmth of the day, to relive the moments, the moments where I see him for the first time.

 _I was carrying a large bag of groceries (more like fumbling) back to my father's farm. The town smelled of honey, as the bakery was right next to gigantic fans. The florist had just cut fresh flowers, and the scent collided with the sweet honey, making an almost heavenly aroma._

 _As I walked down the street, clumsy me, I tripped on a pomegranate that fell out of my bag. I flew forward, spilling the groceries every which way, but before I fell to the ground, something caught me. No, someone._

 _I looked up, all red-faced from the embarrassment, to see a stunning man with dazzling features holding me in his arms. He looked into my eyes as I gazed into his sky-blue ones. We just stood there, him holding me, until we heard a little alarm going off. We realized that we were a perfect match._

 _He gently let me down onto the street, and said in a honey-smooth voice, "Hi, I'm David, nice to meet you." He smiled and held out his hand._

 _Stunned and red-faced, I barely murmured, "H-hi, I'm Sara." I smiled my best smile. I shook his hand, looked down at my shoes and spoke quickly, "Uhm, sorry for all the fuss I caused, I'm a bit of a klutz, I'll just pick up my things and go back to -"_

 _He put a finger on my mouth gently, and said in an almost whisper, "You didn't cause any fuss, you caused fate."_

 _Everything was starting to whip around and blend in with everything else. I saw us on our first date. Everything blurred and twisted again, then I saw us getting married. Again everything warped, then, as if a wave or a wind was carrying me, scrambled thoughts became clear, and I saw us old and withered, cuddled together on a porch, watching the sunset. I was sucked back into the chaotic mess, then pulled down into consciousness again._

I awoke with a start, feeling dizzy and unbalanced. I sat up and stretched. I looked over in the distance towards the town. "I think I'll go get dad's groceries now."


	26. Cara's First Quest

"Cara's First Quest"

Deep in concentration, the famous sorceress Cara was preparing her spells. In no more than a few seconds, she would release a whole range of the deadliest spells known, to completely destroy the troop of trolls threatening her. She felt the rage of the fire building within her. Cara took a deep breath, and as she exhaled, she unleashed the overwhelming force of her spells.

*Smack!*

"Quit daydreaming young lady," shouted Cara's mother, waving a newspaper around, "there's tons of work to do! Get going and bring some more wood. We're running out of it too fast lately. And go tell Zank I'm working on that order of his and it will be ready soon."

Cara sighed. "Yes, mum. I'll go do that."

She took her bag and left the house. Zank's weapon shop wasn't too far, so she decided to go there first. She looked at the many adventurers passing by, envious of their free lives. Zank was busy forging a deadly-looking curved knife when she arrived. She'd give anything to be one of those wielding such knives and roaming the land of Blue, fighting the evil. But she was no more than an ordinary farm girl.

"Ah, hello there, Cara. How are you today? Did your mother send you?"

"Yes, she did. She wanted me to tell you that your order won't take her much longer."

"Ah, thank you, that's good to hear." Zank looked relieved. "I was almost running out of materials to make sword handles. That would cause quite some problems here in Alker Harbor."

"I guess so," said Cara. She had no idea why running out of sword handles would be such a problem. Zank had hundreds of swords lying in his storeroom, she had been allowed in the storeroom a few times before.

"By the way," said Zank, giving her an appraising look, "could you do something for me? I see you're going to Draconian, getting some firewood, I guess? Well, if you are, could you bring this package to a friend of mine? His name is Nathan, you can't miss him. He's got snow-white hair, and is mostly dressed in the simple brown clothes a lot of wizards wear."

"A wizard? Can I go see a real wizard? Cool! Of course I'll help you out!"

Zank let out a roaring laugh. "Yes, you can, little girl. But make sure not to stare at him though. He doesn't like that, especially when he's in a grumpy mood. And he mostly is." Laughing again, the blacksmith turned back to his work. "The packages are on that desk there. The big one is the one you should give to Nathan. The other one is yours, for when you've finished your... er... task. Now, good luck!"

Walking a lot faster than she had on her way to Zank, Cara left for the Ruins of Draconian. Waving cheerfully at the guards at Alker Harbor's gate, she went inside the ruins. There were a lot of monsters in there, but they were no more danger to the citizens than the cows in the fields. In a good mood, she started her search for the wizard, Nathan.

But two hours later, she still hadn't found him. Tired, she picked a tasty-looking apple from a nearby tree, and threw herself on her back in the grass, looking upwards… Right into the robes of an old white-haired man sitting in the tree.

"Well, well. Giving up already? If I hadn't been training youngsters like you for years, I wouldn't have recognized it as the talent you all have."

Cara blushed as the man sprang out of the tree elegantly, despite his old age.

"Are you Nathan, sir? And what did you mean when you said 'we' all had a talent?"

"Yes, I'm Nathan. Well, you're a bit late, took longer than the others at finding me, but at least you brought me the package whole, unlike some others." His eye fell on the red apple in her hands. His eyebrows raised. "And you even brought an apple for this old man? How caring of you, my dear." He took the package, and started eating the apple. In between bites he asked, "Now, what did you say your name was again?"

"I didn't tell you yet," said Cara. "It's Cara. Can I ask you a question?"

"Of course you can. You can ask me anything. Really, anything. I know the answer to every question you can possibly ask." The old man looked at her with a confident smile.

"OK, here comes my first question. You really know the answer to everything, right? Then you must be able to tell me something I've been wondering about lately… Why is Alker Harbor called a harbor? I mean, I've never seen any boats in Alker. And we don't really look like a harbor."

Nathan gave a snort. "That's no question to ask a wizard! Hmpf! You think I know the answer to such trivial questions?" And at that point, Nathan could no longer hold in his laughter. His laugh was clear and loud, and echoed through the trees. "No, of course I don't know the answer to all questions, dear Cara, but you can ask me whatever is on your mind." The old man winked.

"Well, aren't you curious about what's in the package I brought you?"

"Of course not," the old man told, his eyes shining with amusement, "I'd find the same thing in there as always, a rock."

"A... rock?" asked Cara. "Some special wizard rock with magic you need for some incantation?"

"No, of course not! Zank wouldn't let you deliver anything that important as that yet. It's just an ordinary stone, like the ones you can always find next to the roads."

"But... why?"

"Why did Zank ask you to bring me a stone? Because he thought it would be useful for you to bring me a stone. Why else? Now, aren't you curious to that little package you got? Quick, open it up."

Cara carefully opened the package. Amazed, she gaped at the contents.

"That must be over a hundred coins in there!" she said. "Why would he give me that much money?"

"You still haven't figured out yet, haven't you? That's the way things go. When a quest is finished, the one who finished it gets a reward."

"But... only adventurers do quests."

The old man let out a great sigh. "I'm sure glad not all my apprentices are as slow as you are..." He put his left hand in his pocket and slowly pulled out a yellow, shiny medal.

"That's... an adventurer's medal? Does that mean...?" Cara had never felt so happy in her life. "Wait until mum and my friends see this! Thanks, Nathan! I got to tell my mum about this! I'll see ya!"

She ran off towards Alker Harbor as fast as she could. The old man, surprised, leaped up and ran after her.

"Wait! I'm not done yet! Have you never learned to let an old man speak his mind before running off?"

But Cara was already too far away to hear him.

"Well," the wizard thought, "I'll pay Luna another visit. Yes, that would be well. All fine adventurers go to Luna sooner or later. And Cara sure will make a fine one."

Biting his juicy apple, Nathan set out for Alker Harbor, following the trail of a newborn adventurer.


	27. Life and Love

"Life and Love"

One stormy winter night, a lone figure clothed in rags stumbles through a meadow, with no sign of civilization in sight. The pounding rain and ripping winds take a toll on his frail body, worn from days wandering through the vast wild without food or shelter. The figure collapses in the dense grass, exhausted and unable to continue any farther.

 _Is this finally the end? Is this where I am destined to die in obscurity?_

With those passing thoughts, the traveler loses consciousness.

He awakens to a sensation of warmth. Not the blistering warmth of the southern deserts, but a kind, gentle warmth, that engulfed his body and revived his senses. His eyes flickered open, to find two deep hazel-brown eyes staring back.

 _Where am I? Am I dead? Is this heaven?_

When his vision finally focused, he looked about his surroundings. He was lying in a soft bed, in a rather small room decorated with random animal plushies, plain wooden dressers, and a small wooden stool, on which a young girl sat staring intently at him.

"Oh good, you're awake. We were worried you would never wake up." A rather plump, merry-looking woman burst through the door, clad in a plain blue dress and a white smock. "You must be hungry, I'll bring supper down in a second. Thank goodness you're still alive." And just as quickly as she had appeared, she vanished.

The traveler looked back at the young girl and their eyes met again, but she instantly turned away, covering her face in her hands.

"I don't quite get what's going on, but I reckon I'm not dead. Correct?"

The girl simply nodded.

"Then I guess you and the older lady saved me? In that case, I'm really grateful."

This caused the girl to smile. When she took her hands down, the traveler realized that the girl was quite beautiful. She looked to be around his age, and had long, silky black hair tied into a loose ponytail. Her hazel-brown eyes seemed huge in her pale, heart-shaped face. She was wore a black dress, simple yet elegant.

After a long awkward silence, the traveler decided to strike up a conversation. "I'm Drake, what's your name?"

Silence answered him.

"You have a name, don't you?"

She nodded.

"What is it?"

In a barely audible voice, the young girl finally spoke. "Ella."

"Ella? That's beautiful." And so began Drake's stay with Ella.

Drake had collapsed on Ella and her grandmother's family farm. Ever since Ella's parents had disappeared, and her older brother moved to the city, it had been just the two of them trying to keep the farm alive.

Drake, who never knew his family, and had been fending for himself for most of his life, found their simple family life enviable, and offered to help them with their farm in exchange for room and board. Through months of working together, Drake and Ella bonded.

Eventually, one spring morning, Drake asked Ella if she would accompany him to the western fields. Ella, who had warmed up to Drake over the past few months, was still shy and quiet. She simply smiled and nodded.

And so, they ventured off. The day couldn't be any more ideal. The sky was a perfect clear blue, with not a rain cloud in sight. The spring breeze did not bring any sensation of cold. The flowers were in full bloom and butterflies danced in the fields, while birds filled the trees with their songs. They eventually came to a large tree, where they sat in the shade and opened the picnic basket that Ella's grandmother had packed. They sat in silence, eating their sandwiches and enjoying each other's company.

Ella was surprisingly the first to break the silence. "Drake, you have something..." She gestured with her finger to try to indicate a small speck of crust that had stuck to his right cheek.

"Ah, thanks," he replied, as he felt his left cheek, then his right, and finally flicked the crumb off into the hands (paws?) of a squirrel who had scurried down the tree. It grabbed the crumb and dashed back up faster than you could say 'rutabaga'. They both laughed at this, and their eyes met once again. They stared into each other's eyes longingly for a few seconds, before turning away and blushing.

"Hey, Ella," Drake finally said. They looked at each other again, and this time didn't look away. "I know we haven't known each other very long... and... you know, you saved my life and gave me a home and such, and... what am I trying to say? I guess what I'm trying to say is, I love you. I want to spend the rest of my life here with you. Will you marry me?"

Ella responded by leaping into his arms and pulling him into a deep embrace, which caught him a little off guard. Then in a mellow voice, barely audible, she responded, "I love you too. And yes."

They continued their embrace through the evening. From the farmhouse, two silhouettes could be seen against the hazy orange sunset, walking home together arm in arm. And Drake and Ella lived happily ever after.


	28. The Battle of Draconia

"The Battle of Draconia"

In the beginning...

The land and was inhabited by three races: The humans, who were fierce but kind; the elves, who were nature's natural guardians, protecting the world; and finally, the dwarfs, master craftsmen who could build everything out of anything!

The three races lived in peace, happily helping each other. The humans defended the others from attack, the elves taught the others knowledge, and the dwarfs constructed materials the others can not make.

But there was a fourth race, monsters, who were aggressive, primitive beasts with many different forms. They attacked the villages in which the humans, elves, and dwarfs live for the sole purpose of providing shear terror.

The villages were used to being attacked, but Draconia was not prepared for a massive invasion...

* * *

 **Chapter 1: Ruins of Draconian**

"Piellanshar, wait!" Celerian pleaded with the running child, "Come here, you!"

Sadly, Piellanshar never was one to wait.

"Move faster, old lady!" Piellanshar shouted at the woman, "You're moving slower then Wiff!" She ran across the fields, her feet carrying her body like a feather. The fields of Draconia were the best place to dash about! But Celerian was having none of it. She just waved her hand and stopped Piellanshar in her tracks.

Piellanshar complained, "Lemme go, lemme go! You elves and your magic..." As hard as she tried, she couldn't break free of Celerian's spell.

"Us elves and our magic are what's keeping this place so healthy," retorted Celerian. "Without us, this place wouldn't look half as good as it does."

"Doesn't need much help now, does it?"

"Oh, shush." Agitated, Celerian crouched over and touched a rose bush. Instantly it burst into full bloom. Celerian picked a rose bud that now looked as if it were meant to be worn as jewelry. She stuffed it in Piellanshar's hair. "Now do you think I'm helpful?"

Celerian released the spell and Piellanshar innocently touched the flower on her head. "Maybe," she replied, but it was obvious she loved the beautiful flower.

"A good day to you, lovely ladies," Wiff said to them as he entered the field, "Now, what was that about running as slow as me?" He eyed Piellanshar, daring her to challenge him.

Suddenly, both of them sprinted off in the same direction, not caring where they went. They should have cared though. They were about to uncover a war. As the two dashed along, they looked at each other, waiting to see who would fall behind first.

"Just because I'm younger then you doesn't mean I'm not as fast as you!" Piellanshar raced ahead, creating a gap between her and Wiff. He didn't mind at all. In fact, he was letting her take the lead!

As she sped on, he yelled, "Okay, you win, I'm too tired to go on!" He stopped and stood still, waiting for her to come back and happily gloat at him.

What happened was not what he expected. Piellanshar ran back, but there was something pursuing her. Monsters.

Wiff was stunned for a moment, but he soon recovered. He drew his sword and yelled, "Pie!" She ran into his open arms, sobbing madly, but Wiff would not just run away with her, he had a village to protect.

"Listen well," he spoke quickly to Piellanshar, "I want you to go to town and bring reinforcements. There is trouble brewing." And he let Piellanshar out of his grip. "GO, NOW!" Then Wiff faced the incoming threat, giants and ogres racing toward him.

Piellanshar ran faster then she ever had before, for now she had a purpose. Blinking tears away, she came across Fesilos and Farouk. They were discussing something about a stone and its amazing floating properties. Piellanshar didn't care much, as there was a more urgent thing she had to attend to.

"Monsters! An army of them on the way! Please, please help Wiff!" She started to sob again at the memory of parting with him. However, she pointed in the direction she had came from, and the two rushed past her, hurrying to aid a friend.

Her task was still not done, she had only informed the magician's league, now she had to find the rogue union.

"Tierre, where are you?" she cried out, her voice cracking as she kept shouting. "Tierre, send in reinforcements!" Amazingly, Tierre appeared right next to Piellanshar.

"I already have, I saw you and Wiff together and decided to follow you guys, in case something bad happened, like Wiff losing his shiny boot," Tierre said to the little girl, hoping to comfort her. "You're very brave you know. Now, I want you to go to Alker Harbor and rest. You've had enough adventures for one day."

Piellanshar agreed and smiled weakly. "You guys won't lose right?"

"Never."

Piellanshar's smile was a little more believable now. She turned and ran to Alker Harbor. Tierre watched her go until she was nothing more then a speck, and immediately contacted Farouk through a crystal ball. "How are things going?"

Farouk's voice was dull, his robe was shredded and his chest was showing through his torn shirt. "We weren't able to save Draconia. The monsters pushed us farther and farther back until they reached the village. We are holding our ground here, but... it's in ruins. Draconia is no more."

* * *

 **Chapter 2: Fighting for What's Left**

Tierre held her breath, and muttered a prayer. "What of the villagers? Where are they?"

"Some are evacuating with Fesilos directing them..." Farouk paused, turned around and conjured a ball of fire in his hand. "...and some are with us fighting for what's left." He threw the fireball at a raging cyclops that was terrorizing Tasartia, she ran off.

"I can't chat for long, I need to regroup and protect those who haven't escaped yet." Farouk placed the crystal ball into his pocket and roared, "FOR DRACONIA!" He rushed into the crowd of monsters and let out a massive blaze that surrounded him, scorching all those around.

"That man," Tierre whispered to herself. "He has no limits, does he?"

Farouk was aided by Wisy, her sword drenched in blood. They were winning, despite being outnumbered by cyclops and other creatures. While Wisy slashed those around her, Farouk kept throwing spell after spell at the cyclopes' eyes, instantly killing them.

"Wisy, go ahead and help those leaving," Farouk shouted as he started to go in closer, "I can manage this area by myself." And he was off, using magic, pounding gargoyles and golems to the ground.

Wisy nodded, and went ahead. Her goal now was to protect those evacuating and those fighting. Farouk could handle himself, she was more worried for Tasartia. "She wasn't a fighter," Wisy thought, "No way she can survive a full war." She was wrong however.

"Tasartia!" Wisy called for her, "Where are you?"

"Over here!"

Wisy looked left and right, but could not find her. "Where?"

Suddenly Tasartia came out from the shadows. "Right here." She gave a faint smile and gave Wisy a hug. "I'd thought that no one would ever come for us!" Wisy could see that she had been crying, but was more surprised at hearing 'us.'

"Us?"

Tasartia nodded and went back, this time Wisy could see her and followed promptly. She the way to two people, Luna and Sola. "The two priestesses," Wisy gasped in surprise, "What in the world are they doing here?"

"They came here to retrieve the floating stone," Tasartia replied.

"We were going to meet Farouk and Fesilos to discuss more of this stone, but they were nowhere near the destination we agreed on," Luna informed Wisy, and then allowed Sola to continue for her.

"And that's when the monsters spotted us walking here," Sola continued. "Tasartia drove them off."

Wisy was stunned. "How in the world did you do it?"

Tasartia simply shrugged. "I had a potion that was supposed to be for Celerian. It was the only thing I had on me, so I threw it." She made a gesture of tossing it like a football. "When it hit, they ran."

Wisy was giggling. It was Celerian's medicine for Piellanshar, to restrain some of her astonishing energy. Amazing how it affected monsters. Wisy calmed down enough to say, "And then you guys hid here?"

"We did, but then Tasartia decided to go search for help," Luna said. "She found Farouk quite busy, so she returned here."

Wisy said, "Well, I'm going to be your protector for now. Would you mind coming with me to Alker?"

The other three agreed, and they headed to the harbor, the closest sanctuary. They couldn't just run without cover, so the party traveled in stealth, slowly making their way to the harbor without bringing attention to themselves. Soon, the four came across a familiar figure.

* * *

 **Chapter 3: All for Her**

"Wiff!" Wisy cried out. She saw him lying by a tree, his blade by his side. She ran past the others and knelt near him. "Oh, what have they done to you?" His face had a wide gash running down the right side, and his usually polished armor was covered in dents and scorches.

Luna and Sola ran up and said in unison, "Let us heal him." With that, the two priestesses knelt on either side of Wiff and placed their hands on his head. A dim light built up in their hands, its soft glow healing his wounds.

"Pie!" Wiff woke with a start. The gash on his face was nothing more then a scar. "Pie, where is Pie?" he madly called. His armor was still dented, but it did not stop him from getting up.

"It's okay, Piellanshar is probably in Alker Harbor now, napping," Wisy told him, though she wasn't sure. Farouk had said that Piellanshar was the brave child who called for help, but Wisy had no idea if she was safe or not. "Now, let's worry about you. What happened to you?"

"Ogres and giants, coming to destroy Draconia," Wiff started, but Tasartia interrupted him, "And they have, all that's left are ruins. The others are currently holding the creatures back from reaching Alker Harbor."

"That's not why they're here!" Wiff said, "They aren't here to destroy, they came to find a... a queen. This whole thing was just so they could find their queen!"

Wisy was the one who spoke first, "Do you know this for certain?"

"I questioned the leader of this band of monsters, Laito," Wiff replied, "and he told me this. And then they all hooted for what their breath was worth. I slew many, but they still hooted as if victory was certain."

"That's because victory IS certain, if they find her," Luna warned, "They must not find Kierra."


	29. Kage Ryu's Continued Blueland Adventure

Kage Ryu's Continued Blueland Adventure

"Watch out!"

Moments after the cry, a shield crashed into Kage Ryu and shoved him far out of the way. Vera Playnes, the owner of the shield, then took the brunt of Klulerhorn's icy blast in Kage's stead. Despite having only slightly more resistance to magic than Kage, Vera was quite adept at taking hits. However, she was at her limit now.

"Vera! You all right!?" Kage called out. He rushed over to her as the overpowered goblin patriarch charged his Head of the Tribe's Wand for another attack.

"Heh, not really... I was being clumsy again, wasn't I?" Vera uttered with a pained smile.

Klulerhorn cared not for the drama, and swung his charged staff at the pair. However, his strike was interrupted as he was thrown to the wayside by a powerful Body Check, paralyzing his movement for a time. The assailant was a half-elven warrior clad in light blue leather armor, who then readied his blade for a follow-up attack. The lightning-surged Windy Blow tore through the mighty goblin, but wasn't enough to put him out. Klulerhorn responded by thrusting his still-charged staff into the warrior, knocking him back several meters.

"Raiken!" Vera called out to the warrior.

"I'm fine," Raiken V'Cazel grunted, staggering to his feet. He had taken a heavy hit, but his spirit always kept him going.

"Good, because it's time to finish this," Kage remarked. "Ready?"

"Go!"

The great goblin patriarch's power overflowed, but his body was in rags; he couldn't take much more. Kage leaped into the air as Klulerhorn readied yet another attack. The patriarch's attention shifted, however, as Raiken dashed into his peripheral, sword in hand.

"Blazing Sky!" Kage shouted, coming down from the air with his sword aflame. The distracted goblin turned just in time to see plumes of fire blasting into his face as Kage's sword slammed against the earth. Klulerhorn reeled in pain, then Raiken's electrically-charged blade ripped through his back.

Dark power erupted as Klulerhorn's body shredded into the abyss; but soon, that power would escape.

"Now!" shouted Raiken.

"Right!" Kage replied, racing towards the light in the middle of the dark aura.

This light was the third crystalloid of evil power that the group sought, as well as the source of Klulerhorn's power. Kage Ryu reached out, but it was too late. The crystalloid, as well as the dark aura, vanished as quickly as it had appeared. The mission had failed.

"Phew, it's over now, right?" Vera sighed with a hopeful smile.

"Tch, not in the least," responded Raiken distastefully. "It's gone. This is the third time we failed to grab the crystalloid, and now all of the giant goblins are slain."

"Well, this is entirely inconvenient," Kage added with a smile, sheathing his sword.

"Must you always be so cheerful about such nuisances?"

"Well, I just find it unproductive to get annoyed by it, 'tis all. Besides," Kage turned towards Vera, "I'm more concerned about how our tanker is doing after three boss fights in a row."

Kage had a point. Previously, the trio had taken on Kylmuris and Ras, two other giant goblins that had been corrupted by the dark energy. Vera Playnes, while covered in copper armor, had taken a great many hits from the goblins' sword and bow, and now her armor, custom-made by Raiken, had been compromised for the most part by Klulerhorn's magic. Even the clothes she wore underneath had become tattered.

"Oh, really, it's not that bad," Vera argued, getting up. "I'm used to taking this many hits, anyway. I'll be just fine."

She walked. She tripped. She fell.

"What are we going to do with you?" Raiken sighed, although he was really quite amused by the action.

"We're gonna head back to the Harbor, report to Wisy, and take a breather for the night; that's what!" Kage stated, helping Vera back to her feet. To Alker Harbor they went.

* * *

A bright, sunny morning welcomed Kage as he emerged from his tent after a great night's sleep. The sunlight sunk into his spiked, ebony hair and reflected off of the white glasses that perpetually hid his eyes, eyes which gazed upon the sea of clouds that hovered past the edge of the cliff of Alker Harbor.

After stretching out a bit, Kage sat down in the grass, noticing a bloodstain on his jeans left over from the previous day's battles. He then turned his head to see Raiken, asleep against a tree with a brand new set of red bronze armor next to him.

Raiken, seemingly the only half-elf in all of Blueland, was also quite the craftsman. Everything he wore - the leather iron-toed boots, the tan pants, the light blue cloak/tunic garment, the yellow bronze belt, the iron shoulder/chest guard, even down to the dark blue gloves, scarf cape and headband - were all constructed by Raiken. The calluses on Raiken's hands suggested that he had stayed up through the night in order to construct the armor that lay next to him. As Raiken himself never wore such an abundance of heavy metals (it would just slow him down), and Kage's armor was still in good condition, this new set was likely crafted for Vera.

Kage pondered the armor for a while. It seemed that such a project would take weeks, and Raiken must have been working on the armor for quite some time. As serious and blunt as Raiken appeared to be, deep down he strongly cared for any teammate that gained his trust, such as Vera.

 _Ah, Vera,_ Kage thought to himself.

Vera Playnes was another case altogether. Although heavy armor, such as the set made by Raiken, had an impact on her ability to take damage, her endurance stemmed mostly from her incredible stamina. The fact that Vera could assess tons of bodily damage and brush it off the next day made it hard for one to believe she was only human.

Another interesting fact was that Vera hardly ever used her shield to actually block. Instead, she would parry attacks with the sword wielded in her right hand. Stranger still was that she was a southpaw, who would, more often than not, attack with her shield.

As Kage was thinking about this, he heard a rustling from the other tent.

After a while, Vera emerged. "Good morning," she cheered softly, still slightly sleepy.

Kage nodded and responded, "And a good morning to you too." He turned to Raiken. "Hear that, Raiken? I think it's time to wake up."

"Yeah, I hear ya," muttered the barely audible Raiken, eyes still closed.

"Great then. After breakfast, we shall head for Zakandia," announced Kage.

According to Wisy, there were still two more sources of evil power left: Gyer, the giant black bear, and Heis, the grand iron golem. If Kage and his team could get a crystalloid from at least one of them, then they could find out how these oversized monstrosities came to be.

They continued onto Zakandia after breakfast, with Vera constantly thanking Raiken for the new armor. Raiken was clearly annoyed by this after a while, but out of courtesy, did not say anything.

After a few hours of hiking, the trio reached Zakandia. Zakandia, for the most part, was populated by goblins. It took yet another hour of wading through the masses of monsters before they reached the city.

"Alright," spoke Kage, "Let's go and ask some of these people where we can find the monsters."

"Let's! Let's!" agreed Vera. "I feel ready to take on the world with this awesome new armor that Raiken made me!"

Raiken ignored the praise. "I'm going to get some supplies from the local vendor. You two can ask around."

"Okay, Raiken, and thanks again!" Vera praised.

"Don't mention it," Raiken muttered, adding in thought, _Ever._

He turned and walked away, rather eager to get away from the excessive gratitude.

After finishing shopping for various items, Raiken heard a voice. It was hard to make out the tone or the location, but the sudden voice was asking for a duel.

 _A duel, huh?_ Raiken wondered, then replied, "Alright, I accept."

He turned to face the voice for the first time, but there was no one there. Raiken readied his sword and studied the environment.

 _Show yourself,_ he thought, _I know you're hiding somewhere. . ._

Suddenly, Raiken felt it - a sharp blow to the head that sent him into a daze. He couldn't think, but he could see. What he saw was a purple-clothed man with a ponytail wielding a dagger, slashing at him with such speed that Raiken's eyes could not keep up. It was over as quickly as it started; Raiken hit the ground, hard.

"Unh..." grunted Raiken, struggling to his feet. He was in severe pain, and bleeding at that, but at least his life was not in danger. Being grateful for that, as well as being a good sportsman, Raiken congratulated the fighter.

"But," Raiken added, "just what... was that?"

"It's a skill," replied the rogue. "If you ever need help... just whisper me."

 _And just how does that work?_ retorted Raiken in his mind. "Wait, what is your name?"

"Windmill," he answered. As suddenly as he had come, Windmill vanished from sight.

A puzzled Raiken stood there, contemplating the duel he had lost. His moment of peace was soon interrupted by a familiar scream.

"RAIKEN! Goodness, are you alright!?" cried out Vera, as she and Kage hurried to his aid.

Kage gaped, "Whoa, what happened to you?"

"This is nothing," retorted Raiken. "I just need to rest for a bit."

"My goodness!" worried Vera, "Oh, if only you wore this armor instead, you wouldn't have gotten hurt, and -"

"It wouldn't have mattered. I was... too slow. And underprepared."

"Yeah, but -"

"Hold on, hold on," Kage cut in. "So, what exactly happened here?"

Raiken did not answer right away; he simply looked off into the direction Windmill had last gone. After a moment, he replied, "I lost. I lost a duel." He hardened his distant gaze, finishing with, "I was probably far out of my league anyway."

Vera gave a sigh of relief, "Phew... I thought you had gotten into trouble or something." She smiled, "I'm just glad you're okay!"

"Thanks," Raiken said, "but I won't be satisfied until I get stronger." _I cannot lose again; I will challenge him again someday, and win._

"Well then, I think I have something that might cheer you up," Kage assured Raiken.

"Really? And that might be... ?" Raiken was curious now.

"The chance to defeat Gyer, of course! Vera and I found out where he tends to hang around. Surely capturing his crystalloid will restore a bit of your honor?"

"Restore my honor? Maybe. But I'll definitely feel better once we do that."

"Splendid!" Kage exclaimed. "Take five, then we shall get to the bear hunting."

"Back to adventure!" Vera interjected.

"All right then," said Raiken. _Windmill... I know you're willing to help. But this is a battle I must fight alone, until we are equals in power._

After a period of rest, Kage Ryu and his team set out to destroy the beastly bear, Gyer, just as they destroyed the goblins.


	30. Legend of Kah'Zeil

Legend of Kah'Zeil

 **An Introduction to Majin**

The majin are dark-skinned denizens of the underworld of Blueland. As the residents of Blueland have become more powerful, their collective auras allowed for the birth of the majin, and as time went by, a rift opened which allows the majin to enter into Blueland.

All majin are born with the inherent ability to learn any of the majin arts they would choose; the speed, precision, and power skills of the majin fighter, or the mastery over various elements as a majin wizard. However, the majin have arts that have been ignored for far too long, and it is time for these arts to resurface in a majin that will come to be known as Kah'Zheil, the Bringer.

 **Prologue**

To this day, I don't know who my parents were, why I was abandoned as a small child, or where most of my gifts came from. What I do know makes for a good story though, so let me tell you that story.

 **Chapter 1: Abandoned**

There I was, lying in a bed of fur or hair, it didn't matter which, clutching two objects that seemed to be made for my hands. Feeling the surface of these objects, I gave myself a small cut, so I made sure to hold onto the handle, and not touch the sharp parts.

I couldn't really see anything. It was pitch black, and after coming to my senses, I felt there was a dull pain in my stomach. I realized I was hungry and needed to get food. Remember how I said it was dark? Well, that didn't necessarily mean that I was blind in the darkness. I could feel life force all around me. With a little focus, I was able to discern what was strong and what was weak. There was very little around me that was weaker than I was at that point, but fortunately there was a weakened life force nearby.

I crawled towards the life force, feeling along the wet ground and desperately hoping that my prey will be my meal. When I was close enough to feel the slight warmth of the dying creature, I felt a sad acceptance from it, its dying feelings. For a moment, I felt that I should help the creature, but I had no idea how to heal anything. So I plunged one of the objects, which I would later find are called 'pinsirs', into the dying creature's head and made it my meal.

With the newfound energy I got from eating, I could 'see' with much more clarity. Quickly, I discerned that the weapons in my hands had handles, forged of stone and animal skin, with flat, sharp blades protruding outwards and ending in a point. This newfound sight still didn't extend very far and I had little bearing on my surroundings, outside of other life forces.

Getting past my new clarity, I noticed that the stinging sensation from when I cut myself earlier was gone, and when I moved to feel the cut on my finger, I felt no bit of skin out of place. My finger had been completely healed. It seemed unnatural for a cut to heal so quickly just from eating, but I accepted the fact that I was no longer in pain and just rested, carefully stretching my mind to ensure that nothing powerful would come prey on me, as weak as I was.

Soon, I realized that it was cold in this dark environment. Thinking back, I remembered that I was lying on warm... fur, was it? Yes, I was sure that it was fur. I tried to sense where it was, but I was too far away to feel the presence of something like fur. Unfortunately for me, grateful as I was for the meat, there was no fur on the creature I killed and in my desperation for food, I had not thought to at least keep the skin of the creature intact.

I tried to retrace my steps back to the patch of fur, but it was either long gone or I went in the wrong direction, for I could not find it again. So stuck I was, for the moment, alone, scared, and surrounded by darkness.

After some time sitting and resting, I started to become hungry again and went out to search for food. Unlike when I woke up, there was no weak creature nearby, as if the land itself were challenging me. I didn't like it. My concern now was food, not testing my strength. Reaching out with my mind, I looked for a creature weak enough for me to kill. Regrettably, the weakest creature in my range wasn't weak, probably a little bigger than I was, and awake. Cautiously, I tried to sneak up on it as best I could.

This was very difficult as the wet ground stuck to the bare bottoms of my feet. Ultimately, I failed, and I sensed the creature starting to approach me.

I tensed up, fearful yet excited for what was to come. I guess since I had grown used to the unknown, this didn't scare me as much as it should have. I felt the presence of the creature speed up just a little and waited for the moment when I should strike. Suddenly the creature slowed to a crawl and then stopped. I caught myself holding my breath, wondering if I should strike. I noticed my legs were shaking and I breathed in and out to calm myself. That was a mistake. The creature jumped and I held my pinsirs as a shield against the impact of the creature's blow.

I stood for what seemed like an eternity in that defensive stance. I couldn't feel the creature upon me. It was like it had disappeared without a trace. Still, there was something wrong. I doubted that a creature would just leave their prey like that. Then I remembered my earlier meal and how it was just lying there, in its weakened state. I lowered my guard and relaxed, and got a lesson that it is never safe to lower your guard, for suddenly my back was against the ground and there was a tremendous weight upon me.

I tried to roll, but the creature's weight was too much and I only had one arm free. In desperation, I cried out, and slashed at the creature with my free pinsir. Blood gushed onto me and the creature leapt back with a squeal, giving me room to breathe and get up. This time, there would be no tricks from the creature. It was wounded and couldn't conceal its presence from me. Screaming, I ran at the creature and lunged with my pinsirs, but it hit me back with a heavy blow. I tumbled through the air and briefly wondered how big of a creature I was fighting before I hit the ground and rolled back onto my feet.

I could feel the creature bound towards me. Fear overcame me and I threw my arms into a cross to guard my front and I screamed as the creature impaled itself onto my pinsirs. Time slowed down as I felt the creature's body against mine, the fur becoming drenched in warm blood. Then I snapped back to reality once I felt the creature move to hit me one last time. I had no way of knowing if the blow would have killed me or not, but I guess I assumed it would because I screamed and energy I didn't know existed flowed out of me and the creature was blasted backwards.

For the first time since I had been here, I saw my surroundings. Giant columns of dripping stalactite hanging from a void that my light couldn't penetrate. Huge spires of rock built up under that same stalactite. But most of all, not a single friendly-looking space or entity in sight. For the first time, I knew that I was alone in this treacherous cave.

When the light disappeared and panic subsided, I crept towards my kill. After that strange use of power, I was suddenly sore and my mind was weary. It was all I could do to actually find the beast and cut away at its flesh. Learning from past experience, I skinned it and draped what was comfortable around my own body.

After making my second meal out of the dead creature, I left the carcass and mindlessly wandered towards the dripping sound of the stalactite. It was a little moister than other places in the cave, but it was more comfortable because I could lean against something. I slipped down into a sitting position, wrapped myself in my fur, and I slept.

When I woke, I immediately reached out with my mind to scan the area. Finding nothing, I relaxed and recounted the events from before my sleep. I was alone and there was no one else around. I tried to form an idea about why I was alone in some dark cave, but then I remembered the light I conjured before and became enamored with this new ability. So I got up and started practicing on the stalagmite.

Surprisingly, focusing my energy into another ball of light came easily enough, though it drained me significantly. So much so that I had to rest for a while before I could try it again. The next time I blasted the stalagmite, I shouted, "Flare!" I don't know where the word came from or how I knew it at the time, but it made the casting easier and, for some reason, was less tiring than focusing purely with my mind. The word had no negative effects and the blast was loud enough by itself that it didn't matter if I shouted or not, so it just became habit.

I soon found that I could use this technique five times before needing a break, and I rested when I came to that point. Thinking back, I found that all the creatures I sensed earlier didn't seem so scary or powerful, though I still didn't know what any of them looked like. Soon finding food was easy, and it even tasted better since it was cooked a little from my spell.

After many cycles of kill, eat, train, and sleep, I found it was getting more and more difficult to actually find prey. The creatures around here were weak and growing scarce. I was growing bored. I had practiced enough that I could actually keep a fireball suspended in front of me as a source of light. I had also found that, using my pinsirs as a catalyst, I could reduce further the energy required to keep up my light source. However, even with this new source of light, I still chose to scout out prey with my mind, since nothing can sneak up on me like that.

Before I set out, I reached out with my mind, found a small creature, and blasted it with my spell, killing it and cooking the meat all in one. I then gathered the carcass up and left on my way to explore this vast cave I've been thrust into.

 **Chapter 2: Not Alone**

Much time went by as I walked along this path littered with many stalagmites and the occasional flicker of life. Oddly enough, focusing only caused these flickers to be rendered completely invisible. As I continued on, I could sense nothing other than the solid stalagmites and the lifelessness surrounding me.

Still, I couldn't shake the feeling that there was something amiss. I kept walking, slowly nibbling away at the creature I had killed earlier, and I finally came to the end of the stalagmites. I turned around to view the path I had walked and saw nothing but the cold ground stretching to the ends of my light. It didn't matter that now I didn't know where I came from, but now I knew something was definitely wrong. There must have been scores of stalagmites, perhaps even a hundred, and yet they were all gone.

Something else nagged at me. I never heard anything other than the soft sound of my footsteps upon the cave floor. There should have been dripping sounds, yet it was completely silent. All the other stalagmites I'd seen had dripping sounds, so why didn't these? I didn't know this at the time, but I was too young and inexperienced to realize someone was watching me. Not with malice, but with intrigue over the child majin that walks the darkness with naught but a pair of pinsirs and a single creature's fur.

After a time of pondering, I forged onwards. There was nothing I could think of to explain why an entire field of stone spires could have just disappeared like that. Soon, I found something more sensible. Another stalagmite, not unlike the one I slept against before, but somewhat smaller and with the familiar drip noise which eased my mind greatly. It was a place to rest from the long walk I had just endured. To hide better, I snuffed out my ball of light and let myself become blanketed in the darkness, and I slept, though not soundly. Still, I would need the rest for what was to come, I sensed, for I could feel the life force of several powerful creatures in the distance.

I soon woke to the sound of a crash, similar to the thunder of a lightning bolt, coming from the direction of the powerful creatures I sensed earlier. When I looked, I saw a dim light coming from that same direction. It was something familiar in the unknown, something rare for me to see if I was not the cause of it. Fearfully but cautiously concealing my presence, I stalked towards the dim light, wondering at the jarred movements and the occasional bursts of jagged light. I couldn't really see clearly what lie ahead, but from what I could tell, the one making the light was big, and what it was fighting, even bigger, and round.

Once I got close enough to the battle to see, I saw the light-maker first. He was tall, masculine, and carried a staff of stone adorned with a skull on top in his right hand. In his left, he carried a single pinsir, made of the same shiny material that mine were made of. His arms and torso were roughly the same as mine, but his legs were quite different. His thighs bent forwards while his knees were backwards. The legs of a wolf, or horse. And he had a tail too, tapered at the end with a coat of mahogany fur.

Last, I noticed the horns on his head. He had long, messy hair, but the horns were more interesting. They curved forward, as if they were used to impale things via head butt. Evidence of their use was shown in the dark, bloody color they exhibited. Curious, I moved my hand to feel my head and was surprised to find two bumps under the skin of my forehead.

Another flash of light and I saw the creature he was fighting: an enormous black-shelled beetle standing upon its hind-legs. With four sharp and thorny legs exposed, it was a fearsome creature to battle against alone.

Suddenly, the light-maker was gone and I held his staff. A giant beetle stood before me, though not the same one that he was just fighting. A flash of jagged light from the staff and the beetle was dead, lying on the ground. The stench! Oh, the stench of freshly fried beetle was horrible! Then, out of nowhere, a slash cut across my torso from the left, then another from the right and I leapt backwards in searing pain.

I snapped back to reality. I no longer held the light-maker's staff and I had no pain in my chest. I quickly realized that it wasn't a real experience, but rather a memory the light maker was showing me. Clearly he was intelligent, showing me this, and not, at least currently, meaning me any harm. I also noticed that he was standing in a pool of his own blood. So I did what I thought I should do, I called forth my power and blasted the beetle as it hit the light-maker's staff away from him and into the darkness.

Yet again, I was thrust back into the light-maker's memory. It was right before he struck the first beetle with lightning. This time, the focus was different. I could feel the lightning being called forth; the focus, more pinpointed than my flare, and I felt the willpower used to conjure it. I could feel the light-maker casting his lightning bolt spell and I understood what he was doing. He was showing me how to strike with lightning, the only thing that was any good at killing these horrifying beetles.

The mammoth beetle was almost upon me, with both of its right legs raised for an attack. I dived under its attacking side, the smaller thorns on its legs cutting into my back as I did so. When I rolled up onto my feet, I felt the same searing pain as in the light-maker's memories. The burning sensation of the beetle's thorns cutting through my flesh, though not too deep, due to the fur I wore to clothe myself.

I rolled to my feet and faced the back of the beetle. Although it was fast to attack, it was slow to turn around. I felt a feeling of approval from the wounded light-maker as I focused and summoned the willpower necessary to use the light-maker's skill. The spell of...

"Lightning!"

Power rushed out of my body in the form of the jagged light and struck at the crack in the beetle's back, at the point where the two shells covering its wings met. The beetle fell and I fell with it. Exhausted and bleeding, the last sensation I felt before I passed into sleep was the warm touch of the light-maker's energy filling my cuts.

For once, I wasn't alone.

Not long after, I awoke, alert to the dying presence near me. The light-maker was still bleeding from the wounds in his chest, although slowly.

The light-maker spoke to me, in a voice that seemed to come from inside my own mind. _I am called a taehr-reqh (stand-beast), little one, the last of my kind. You are called a 'majin', a being of this land that they call the underworld. You will understand more soon enough._

What would I understand? These caves had no ceiling. It's just a world of darkness with the only light coming from those who had the power to wield it. I was puzzled at this. The taehr-reqh was speaking to me in words that I had never heard before, but understood clearly, as if I had spoken them myself for my entire life, and now I had questions of my own I wanted answers to.

 _You're puzzled, little one. I have a power similar to yours. Most beings do, but with varying degrees of clarity. Mine is particularly clear and allows me insight to another's mind, though even I do not see everything. I speak and teach in this way as well, though it drains my energy to do so._

As the taehr-reqh was speaking to me, my mind was being flooded with images; paths, crafts, armors, and materials. He was teaching me where I should go and how to survive the journey. I learned the basics of cooking, crafting, and harvesting materials. Then other images flooded my mind, an accidental glimpse into the taehr-reqh's past. I saw them, beings clad in dark armor with flames licking the air around them. They didn't feel evil, but they had a purpose that they would never stray from, no matter the cost, even if this taehr-reqh's family and village were torn apart, stone from stone and limb from limb.

My mind was jarred as the taehr-reqh suddenly released his hold on me. I had learned so much, yet understood so little of the world I was thrust into. Then, I saw the wounds on the taehr-reqh's torso.

"But you were a great warrior, one who slew many of those beings who wear fire!" I said, recalling the events from his slipped memory. "You should have ducked, or dodged or... or something!"

"BOY!" The taehr-reqh suddenly stood and his image was intense, terrifying even. "I have seen things men only dream of seeing. I have done things no man dares to do! Yet you, a fledgling demon child with no heritage or legacy to speak of, dare lecture me on my battle skills?" were the words the taehr-reqh spoke to me. The image of the devilish demon of war faded away and a kinder image, one of a friend, seeped back in.

"Well," the taehr-reqh continued as he coughed up a bit of blood, "I guess... I've gotten a bit rusty." And then, the last of the taehr-reqh, and possibly my first friend, fell to the ground in a pool of his own blood. He used the last of his strength to teach me that nothing should go to waste and then, the last of his life force faded into nothingness.

I heeded his advice and made use of the knowledge he gave me. I approached the dead black-beetle from before, wary of any beetle-friends that may be lying in wait. Lucky or not, there were no other beetles in the area and I took what I needed from the beetle, the back shells of its wings, and set to work.

I charged my pinsirs with my energy and used them to cut through the shells and created a chest-plate, two wrist guards, and some armor for my legs. Soon, I was finished with the plates for my armor, but had nothing to wear them with. At first, I was going to leave them, but then I remembered the last thing the taehr-reqh taught me: Let nothing go to waste. With that in mind, and as much as it pained me to do so, I skinned the taehr-reqh's body and used his skin as leather to make the rest of my armor so I could wear it.

Then I created a grave, buried his remains, and hoped no creatures would disturb it. Remembering my friend's knowledge, I set out on the path to the majin tribe.

 **Chapter 3: Others Like Me**

I walked along the path the taehr-reqh set for me, past the now pseudo-familiar landmarks from memories not my own... stalagmites of varying heights in specific patterns, and strange cracks in the ground. Eventually, I came to something particularly familiar. The stalagmite I had slept against before my encounter with the taehr-reqh and the beetles.

Now, I could sense it. I could sense them: a few, maybe three or four life forces scurrying around, trying to hide their presences from any unwanted attention. In the midst of this confusion, I felt two large creatures, significantly greater in power than the beetles, but more docile, in a way.

Suddenly, I felt the three scurrying life forces stop moving and they nearly faded from my clairvoyance. A short time passed and suddenly, one of the life forces leapt across the space and clashed with one of the creatures. As they clashed, lightning arced from one of the other life forces to the second creature and I saw what they were. They were majin, others like me. And the creatures? They were large, four legged, with horns atop their heads and scales of stone running the length of their bodies.

The first majin went in close, slashing at the weak points in the creature's armor with his pinsirs. Suddenly, that creature was encased in ice and the first majin started attacking the creature that was hit by the lightning. Surprisingly, I noticed that this majin wasn't hurt at all, even though he was in the middle of everything, in addition to that, the second creature wasn't even attacking back. Suddenly, there was an explosion of light and the first creature was obliterated by a flare spell that came from the third majin. Then that same majin cast the lightning spell on the last creature and it was downed.

All of this struck me as very coordinated, and much more efficient than what I had been doing. I could have never taken on those stone creatures alone. The beetle I'd slain earlier wasn't even really my kill; the taehr-reqh had weakened it beforehand. These three, they were more powerful, more coordinated, and had a sense of teamwork, something I'd never seen before I came here. Yet, they didn't seem all that much older or particularly stronger than me.

I crept closer to get a better bearing on what they were saying, when a fourth majin suddenly appeared. His power was staggering, or at least seemed so in my youth, and he addressed the trio of majin as their mentor.

"Ohl'Zha, you did exceptionally well. You did everything as you were supposed to, perhaps too out of the book. You need to learn to analyze and adapt." The mentor had lit a ball of light and set it in the middle of the group in order to speak to them directly.

"Ohl'Leiz, you encased the first stehr-reqh in ice, allowing for Ohl'Zha time to attack the stunned stehr-reqh. Again, out of the book, but good job nonetheless."

"Yes, sir," came the reply from Ohl'Leiz. I then noticed that all three of the majin that fought were kneeling on one knee, with one fist supporting from the ground and the other resting on the upwards knee.

"Don't think I've forgotten about you, Teqh'Quieh."

The third majin trembled at the mention of her name.

"You shattered the stehr-reqh with your energy blast, causing the parts to scatter around the battle-field. If this were any other monster, the parts would have been rendered unusable." The mentor paused to take in the effect his words were having on his pupil. "Fortunately for you," he continued, "the goal was the stone of the stehr-reqh, and not the meat or leather. You saw your chance to end its life, and took it."

At this, Teqh'Quieh breathed a small sigh of relief.

"But you attacked without thinking of the consequences of your spell." The mentor sounded stern, maybe he had caught Teqh'Quieh's sigh. "You should have thought it out. Imagine if that had been a rohl-reqh. The leather would have been useless and one of the tribe, that is, you, would have to go without the clothing from its leather."

I saw Teqh'Quieh's head sink at the mention of no clothing.

"So think, just a little," the mentor raised his voice a little here, "about what you're about to do, what will happen if you do it, and if you can do something else with a more favorable consequence. You attack quicker than you think." The mentor paused for a moment and let out a breath. "This time, I will not punish you for your actions, but watch yourself in the future when your life is at stake."

"Ye-yes, sir," came the frightened reply from Teqh'Quieh.

The mentor sighed at Teqh'Quieh's stuttering. "Child, you have no need to fear me, for I am your mentor." His voice had softened, and even became comforting. "I just want you to think a little more before you act."

Slowly, almost undetectable, there was a malicious presence looming in on the majin training group. If the mentor noticed, he didn't give any clues. Soon, the creature was nearly upon the mentor and there was only one thing I could do.

"FLARE!"

I blasted the creature to the side, one of those monolithic beetles, and Teqh'Quieh, reacting to the situation, froze it in place with her ice spell.

"Now what have we here?" It was the mentor, already at my side, examining my very being. "I wondered when you'd show yourself."

The beetle freed itself from the icy prison, to which Teqh'Quieh and Ohl'Leiz struck it with lightning simultaneously, smiting the creature.

"I don't believe I've seen you before," the mentor continued, with quite the inquisitive look on his face. "Do you have a name, boy?"

"No," I replied.

The mentor flickered an irritated look before reassuming his inquisitive tone. "Well, come with us. It's not often that we find a majin youth out here in the wilderness. Besides, one who aids others in time of need, as you did, is a friend of the Degh-Kryst." He motioned for his squad to follow behind him. They did as they were told and followed behind him. "By the way, my name is Tohr'Quinn. You will call me by my name or 'sir'. Though I am not necessarily your superior, it's good to show respect to your elders."

The group walked by, Tohr'Quinn followed by Ohl'Leiz, then Ohl'Zha, and lastly by Teqh'Quieh, who was still gathering her share of the materials from the group's kills.

 _The Degh-Kryst!_ I thought. _That's the tribe I'm looking for!_ Anxious with anticipation, I followed behind Teqh'Quieh, imagination soaring with the idea of meeting a tribe of majin.

Of people like me.

 **Chapter 4: The Tribe's Test**

Before we began our journey back to the Degh-Kryst camp, I asked Tohr'Quinn if I could carry some of the resources from the stehr-reqhs, to which he gave a nod of approval.

I created a ball of light and went to work.

As I was working with the leather of the stehr-reqh to make another bag for the scales and leather I would carry with me, Ohl'Zha and Ohl'Leiz were out of the way, roughhousing with each other. It was very clear who had the upper hand; Ohl'Zha was obviously the stronger of the two, which indicated to me that Ohl'Leiz was one of the spell casters. Teqh'Quieh was off to the side of them, scolding them and trying to get them to stop, although unsuccessfully.

Tohr'Quinn walked up to me. "Boy, where did you get your armor?" He sounded serious.

"I made it," I replied, concentrating on making my stehr-reqh bag.

"This looks like taehr-reqh craft."

"Yes, my friend taught me right before he died."

"He was a taehr-reqh?" Tohr'Quinn sounded worried.

"Yes, why?" I asked, wondering how important my friend really was.

"Impossible..." Tohr'Quinn started mumbling and went past the boys, stopping their roughhousing as he passed by.

Once I had finished my bag and shoved as many scales in it as I could carry, Teqh'Quieh approached me. "What did you say earlier?" she asked. "Master looked really high strung."

"All I did was tell him how I got my armor," I answered.

Teqh'Quieh looked at my armor. "You made this yourself, right?"

"Yes, why?" I answered again, wondering what she was getting at.

"It's nothing like the armor we wear." She moved so my light would reflect off of her clothing better.

She was right. Her clothing wasn't made out of the shells of beetles like my armor was. It was all fabric and nothing hard, yet it was very durable for just clothing. There were patterns along the seams, swirls that collapsed into each other, and ended in circles just under her under arms.

"Do you make your own clothing?" I asked, getting up and hoisting the bag over my shoulder.

"Ahh, no," Teqh'Quieh replied. "I have someone else make it. I get very distracted by practicing my spells."

"Oh, I see..." I couldn't think of anything else to keep the conversation going, so I took the lead and walked over to Tohr'Quinn. He saw us and motioned Ohl'Leiz and Ohl'Zha to fall in, with Ohl'Zha taking up the rear.

Then, something struck my curiosity. "Why do both of your names start with 'Ohl'?"

"We're brothers," came the quick reply from Ohl'Leiz, who turned to walk backwards to face me as we talked.

"Does it mean anything?" I wondered aloud.

"'Ohl' is the ancient tongue's name form for the word 'partner'," he answered, "and 'Leiz' is the ancient tongue's name form for the word 'light'."

"What about 'Zha'?"

"Shadow," came the curt reply from Ohl'Zha.

"'Just as shadow exists alongside light, so will you two thrive off each other's being,'" Ohl'Leiz recited. "That's what they told us when they revealed our names."

"How did they give you your names?" I asked, curious.

"You'll see," Ohl'Leiz said, with a friendly smile.

And so we went along, walking in silence. With my curiosity intensified by Ohl'Leiz's vague answer, I couldn't help but wonder what he meant by 'You'll see.'

 _What could he have possibly meant by that?_ I wondered. Along the rest of the walk, I was lost in thought, occasionally being bumped from behind by Ohl'Zha to stay on the right path, behind Teqh'Quieh and the others.

After much deliberation and walking along in the darkness, I looked up to see shapes forming in the distance. I closed my eyes and searched the memories of the taehr-reqh, and I recognized that the shapes in the distance were houses.

When I opened my eyes again, I saw them: beings wrapped in black metal armor with streaks of hot fire running down the length of their metal sheets. They had a fervid passion about them, as if they truly felt that this is what they must do; to burn down homes and cut through lives. Suddenly, one of them appeared before me and the majin squad was nowhere to be seen, then all went black.

 _What is this place?_

I looked around, up first, and saw a blanket of light stretching as far as I could see.

 _I can... see? My light couldn't do this..._

When I looked down, I saw beings that weren't majin, nor did they have horns. Many of them dueling against talking creatures with all manner of different colors I never knew existed.

When I looked up again, I noticed the feeling of freedom I got from looking at this blanket of light. It was vast, with splotches of this pure light that had almost metallic outlines.

When I looked to the horizon, I saw great mounds of impassable rock and dirt, with colors so lush and rich in comparison to the darkness I was so used to.

"It's beautiful, isn't it?"

 _A woman's voice...?_ I thought. It was calming, and so full of warmth. I couldn't help but suddenly feel at peace with myself, but that didn't stop my curiosity.

I twisted in mid-air to see who spoke, but it was in vain.

"Oh hey, look who's moving." A different, familiar voice this time, but more... real.

I couldn't see the woman who spoke, and suddenly, as a direct consequence of trying to move, I felt air rush past me as the ground came to meet me.

"Wait, he's about to fall! Someone catch him!" I recognized the voice as female, but girly and younger-sounding.

Someone caught me. As I opened my eyes, I recognized that person as Teqh'Quieh's mentor, Tohr'Quinn.

"You gave Teqh'Quieh quite the scare there, boy." He didn't sound condescending, as his words might suggest. He sounded more amused and relaxed, almost chuckling. "You're lucky I came in when I did," he continued, "or else you'd have woken up with a jarring headache."

He set me on my feet. I stumbled backwards, but Tohr'Quinn caught me before I fell. When I regained my bearings, I looked around the room. There were small fires lit, contained in metal frames that glowed from the heat. The walls and ceilings were made of a single, large animal skin, something massive, since it stretched for the length of three full-grown majin.

I noticed my armor lying in a neat heap on the ground and I looked to see what I was wearing in place of it. I saw clothes, not unlike the clothes Teqh'Quieh wore, and fitted to me professionally.

"Where," I began slowly, still feeling the effects of fatigue from my extended sleep, "are we?"

"We're in the Degh-Kryst camp," Ohl'Leiz offered. "Look outside and see for yourself."

I pushed away the one skin flap that wasn't nailed down and I saw a bright, fiery glow coming from a crevice in the ground. All around, there were tents similar to mine, made of various animal skins of different shapes and sizes.

Off a little ways away, I saw Ohl'Zha practicing his jump move he used to ambush the stehr-reqh when I first saw him. He used two stalagmites as targets and went back and forth between them, each strike as precise as the last. It showed too, as there was a large gash mark in each of the stalagmite at the same height and both quite deep. I waved at him, but if he noticed, he didn't give any sign.

"Don't worry, he gets like that during his training." Tohr'Quinn came from behind me and placed a hand on my shoulder. "Come now, you need to get a name. Constantly calling a student 'boy' just wouldn't do, now would it?"

He tugged at my shoulder, gesturing me to follow him. He didn't seem to require an answer to his question, so I stayed quiet as we walked among the tents and other majin.

And there were so many other majin! Each was doing some specific job or training. I saw majin practicing arts that I had never seen before. Fire scorched the area surrounding one majin, another majin cut numerous pieces of leather with a single attack, and there was even one who could destroy the ground under him with a single strike, for the purpose of cooking his meat of course.

The sounds of the majin encampment soon faded away and I found myself in front of a fire. There were two other majin, old, with long, flowing, white hair, sitting such that with another person all three would be evenly spaced. Both gestured me to sit in the empty spot near the fire.

"Go on, boy. This is the name ceremony. Take it seriously. Names are powerful things." And with that, Tohr'Quinn left, presumably to train with his squad or do work.

I did what they asked. I sat, perfectly opposite the two majin, and waited further instruction.

I waited for so long that my feet were getting numb. Before I could ask what was taking so long, the two majin moved with surprising speed, each grabbing one of my arms, and thrust me into the fire.

Suddenly, I was floating above the cool fire. Not warm or hot. Cool. I saw the most unnatural fire I've ever seen, with hundreds of colors and hundreds of shades. The fire split into three sections. On the left were the dark colors, on the right, the light colors, and in the middle, colors that couldn't be described as light or dark. I reached for them, and they rushed into my hands. Fearful, I closed my eyes. When I opened them again, I was sitting in front of an ordinary fire, both majin staring incredulously at the ground before me.

Scorched into the ground was my new name. Kah'Zheil.

 **Chapter 5: The First Hunt**

"Kah'Zheil... meaning 'The Bringer'," said the majin on the left.

"Bringer of what?" I asked.

This time, the majin on the right answered, "We don't know. You've been given a free name, with which to do what you choose."

The majin on the left continued in tandem, "Many paths lie before you. Possibly many more that we don't even see. It's up to you to choose now, Kah'Zheil."

Stunned, and remembering the events from when I first woke up alone in the dark, I asked them, "What about before I came here? If I did something different, could I have a different name?"

"No," they said in unison. "Names are given to us the moment we are born; such is destiny. The name ceremony is merely the process with which you are shown to your true name."

Confused and in wonder about my name, I got up and went back to camp.

Surprisingly, Teqh'Quieh was at the edge of camp to greet me.

"So, what's your name? What'd you see? What does your name mean?"

Still wondering about the ceremony, it took me a bit to register her voice in my head, so I answered slowly.

"They said... my name is 'Kah'Zheil'... It's hard to describe what I saw..." Seeing the look of disappointment on her face, I tried harder, "Well, there were colors everywhere. On one side... the dark colors and on the other, the light colors... and in the middle, the middle colors, all in the form of a blazing fire in front of me. My na-"

"Wow! That's amazing!" She had this gleam in her eye that I had never seen before, like she was truly curious, wondering, and anxious to hear. "It was cool, right? So what does your name mean?!"

"Ahem..." I cleared my throat. "They said my name means 'The Bringer'... And... I guess it was cool, it was nothing I'd ever seen before..." I didn't really know how to answer that question, I didn't have anything to base it off of.

"Okay! Thanks!" Teqh'Quieh shouted as she was running off. I don't know how I didn't notice she was already running, but before I could ask her what her name meant, she was already out of earshot.

"She goes to write down all the details she finds out about everyone's name ceremony. She hopes to figure out what it all means one day."

Startled, I quickly turned around and came face-to-face with Tohr'Quinn's stomach.

"H-hello, sir," I stammered, still not used to Tohr'Quinn appearing out of nowhere. "I... uhh..."

"Out with it, Kah'Zheil. You don't need to be afraid of me," Tohr'Quinn said, pleased with himself as he did so.

"What does your name mean?"

Tohr'Quinn created a light and bent down to the ground. With his free hand, he wrote out 'Tohr'Quinn' in the dirt with a pinsir. Under 'Tohr' he wrote 'invisible' and under 'Quinn' he wrote 'guide'.

"Kah'Zheil, I don't mean to sneak up on you and frighten you, but that's just how I am. Instead of working to conceal my presence like you and the others do, I have to work to make my presence known. Also, I am a guide. I'm the best mentor in Degh-Kryst, I have an amazing sense of direction, and I know how to deal with many situations, making me a good person to go to for advice." He looked at me with kind eyes. "It also happens to be the word for 'father'."

He looked at me for a bit and got up. "Well, I'd better get going. Go introduce yourself to Ohl'Zha and Ohl'Leiz. You see those sparks over there?" He pointed past two tents, where I saw purple and yellow sparks. "That's them." With that, he walked off.

Finding sound advice in his words, I walked towards the sparks. I noticed that they always flew from one spot to another, but then they flew off in some random direction.

When I got within earshot, one of the sparks ricocheted directly towards my face. Having expected this to happen, what with the randomness of the sparks, I blocked it with my pinsirs and ricocheted it up. Eventually it was out of eyesight and I wondered why I could never see anything above me.

"Hey!" It was Ohl'Leiz shouting to me. "What's your name?"

While walking towards him, I called back, "Kah'Zheil."

Soon the distance between us was closed and we could talk face-to-face.

"What are you two doing?" I asked, referring to the flying sparks.

"Oh, we're just practicing a trick we discovered." Ohl'Leiz answered. Ohl'Zha was out of the way, practicing his own moves. "I throw a spell at Zha," at this, he casually cast a flare at Zha. "and he reflects it somewhere else!" As if on cue, Zha bounced the flare off in some direction.

"AHH! MY TENT!" It was a girl's voice, young and frightened.

"Zha," Ohl'Leiz started, tentatively, "where did the flare go?"

"Over there." Ohl'Zha pointed nonchalantly towards a burning tent.

"Uh oh... I think tha-" Ohl'Leiz started, but was interrupted by Teqh'Quieh storming out of the tent, carrying a stack of books, as tall as herself, and several writing tools. When she got a good distance away from the tent, she set her books down, turned around, and created a shell of ice around the tent and the fire, putting it out. Then, she turned towards us and started walking.

"Uh oh... Zha. Run." Ohl'Leiz said. Almost immediately, Ohl'Zha and Ohl'Leiz left me behind to suffer the consequences of their hazardous testing.

Teqh'Quieh approached, hands clenched on her pinsirs. She looked absolutely furious and, to be honest, I feared for my life. I created a light so she could see better and, when she saw it was me, she left her pinsirs hanging at her sides.

She sighed. "It was Ohl'Zha and Ohl'Leiz, right?"

"Yeah," I answered, more relaxed and less afraid for my life.

She waited a bit, contemplating, then let out another sigh. "Okay..." She walked back to her books, weary, and started carrying them back to her tent.

I ran to her side and picked up half the books for her. "Did this happen before?"

"Well, not really." She sniffed, almost about to cry. "I could always salvage my tent..."

When we got back to the tent and the ice had melted, I could see what she meant. Two of the walls had large burn holes in them and the middle bone supports were fractured. They wouldn't hold up much longer.

Suddenly, Teqh'Quieh broke down crying. "They always do stupid things outside my tent!" She was on her knees now, tears coming down with each word. "I tell them over and over again to find somewhere safe, but they-" Sobbing overcame her and she stopped saying anything intelligible.

I didn't know what to do, so I sat near her and waited for the sobbing to subside. When the crying died down a little, I offered to go with her to find more things to build a tent with. Stehr-reqh scales and leather seemed durable, so we decided to go hunt for them.

We salvaged what we could from her tent, then we went to go find Tohr'Quinn and the Ohl brothers. Ohl'Leiz and Ohl'Zha were easy enough to find. Surprisingly, Teqh'Quieh didn't yell at them, burn them to a crisp, freeze them, shock them, or even knock them on the head with her pinsirs. She didn't even so much as look at them, so I had to explain what was going on.

"She's upset that she doesn't have a tent anymore," I started. Ohl'Leiz and Ohl'Zha looked guilty and apologetic, but before they could say anything, I continued. "We're going to go hunt stehr-reqh to build her a new tent; one more resistant to your 'training'."

At my use of the word 'training', Ohl'Leiz flinched. Ohl'Zha was suddenly interested in the ground.

Seeing that no one else felt talkative, I took the lead. "Let's go find Tohr'Quinn."

"Hey, Yih'Stehl, where's Tohr'Quinn?" Teqh'Quieh approached a female majin, sitting against a stalagmite, who was weaving several different leathers together.

"Ahh, Teqh'Quieh and the new one... What's your name?" she said. Her voice was smooth, mellow, and calm. She didn't seem particularly interested, but she definitely expected to be answered.

"Kah'Zheil, ma'am," I replied politely.

"Kah'Zheil, you don't need to call me ma'am. Just call me Yih."

"Umm, Yih'Stehl?" Teqh'Quieh nudged, wanting to get on with it. "Do you know where Tohr'Quinn is?"

Yih'Stehl giggled a little. "Teqh, no one ever knows where he is."

"I thought maybe you saw-"

"Go check with Teihlah'Keqh. Maybe he's getting some supplies."

"Ok, thank you!" Teqh'Quieh stepped away, then turned back towards Yih'Stehl. "Oh, could you make a set of clothes for Kah'Zheil out of these? I don't think Ohl'Zha likes him borrowing his clothes."

I remembered that I was, in fact, in someone else's clothes. I wondered what they did to make Ohl'Zha give up a set of clothes for me.

"Sure, Teqh. It's what I do best."

We walked a little ways and once we were out of earshot, Teqh'Quieh nudged me, "She's a little spacey sometimes, but she's a good crafter."

A few more steps, and Teqh'Quieh mentioned, "Teihlah'Keqh is insane."

"Insane?" I asked, curious.

"She also has strong magical powers, so just play along with whatever it is she says," Teqh'Quieh said gravely.

We walked on, and soon we saw a bit of light surrounding two figures. When we got closer, we saw that the two figures were none other than Ohl'Zha and Ohl'Leiz. Predictably, Teqh'Quieh went quiet as soon as she saw them.

"Why are you out here?" I asked, a little annoyed that Teqh'Quieh wouldn't talk to them and that they wouldn't apologize.

"Tohr'Quinn is... talking... to Teihlah'Keqh," Ohl'Leiz answered. "We don't really know what he's doi-"

Ohl'Leiz was interrupted mid-word as a smoking Tohr'Quinn blasted through the tent flaps, vials and stones in hand. He landed on his back, cradling the vials and stones in his now scorched arms.

"You forgot something!" a voice said, followed by a sack flying out of the tent directly into Tohr'Quinn's chest. "Please come again!" came the cheerful farewell.

"Always..." Tohr'Quinn popped open one of the vials and drank the pink liquid in it. "...plan to buy an extra potion when going to Teihlah'Keqh's..." He then threw the empty vial, cork as well, back into the tent.

"Thank you, dear!" the cheerful voice shouted.

Rejuvenated, Tohr'Quinn brushed himself off and extinguished the embers on his clothing. "I hear Teqh'Quieh is in need of a new tent, is that so?"

Teqh'Quieh seemed transformed in the presence of Tohr'Quinn. She was gathering the stones scattered from Tohr'Quinn's fall when she answered. "Yes, sir." I noticed she didn't bother to explain why she needed a new tent.

"Hmm... Okay..." Tohr'Quinn reached into the sack that was thrown at him and tossed to each of us a small bag. "They're food rations. Eat them. I imagine that you're especially hungry, Kah'Zheil."

He was right. Although I hadn't noticed it earlier, I felt like I'd need something the size of a tent to fill me up. Gratefully, I ate the bland food ration and hung the bag on my waist for later.

"Now then... Ohl'Zha? Ohl'Leiz?" Tohr'Quinn looked at the brothers and they immediately snapped to attention, mid-bite. "Swallow your food and apologize to Teqh'Quieh."

In unison, they swallowed their food and said their apologies.

For a moment, Teqh'Quieh was silent. Then she muttered, "It doesn't mean anything like this." I saw a single tear roll down her cheek.

We were all silent for a little while. Then, presumably tired of waiting, Tohr'Quinn broke the silence.

"Well, let's get hunting, shall we? Kah'Zheil," he gestured to me, "Consider this your first hunt as part of team one."

 **Chapter 6: Teamwork**

"Master, couldn't we walk with a light?"

It was Ohl'Leiz asking the question. It was hard enough to find Tohr'Quinn with a light, and yet here we were, following him without a light.

"No," came the curt reply.

"Why not?" Ohl'Leiz mistakenly asked.

"You know why not, Ohl'Leiz," said Master Tohr'Quinn. "If we're to stalk our prey, we should do so under the cover of darkness, while concealing our presence."

"What about Ohl'Zha, master?"

"Ohl'Zha, do you have a problem with no light?" Master Tohr'Quinn asked, almost in order to prove his point.

"No, Master," was Ohl'Zha's concise response.

This shut Ohl'Leiz's mouth and we walked in silence for a while longer. Soon Master Tohr'Quinn stopped us and addressed me directly.

"Expand your mind."

I did as I was told and, upon doing so, sensed many life forms, small and large, all with the same feel of the stehr-reqh.

"Teqh'Quieh, expand his mind."

I felt the light touch of a palm on the back of my head, then the palm retracted and two points of feeling were left, two fingers.

"Skeh," said Teqh'Quieh, with nothing but a whisper. And slowly, I started to see outlines, fuzzy at first, but steadily gaining clarity. Soon, I could see them all; there were dozens of stehr-reqh, maybe even a couple hundred! If I focused on certain areas, I could pick out size, shape, and number of the scales on the stehr-reqh.

"Well, Kah'Zheil, you're the one whom the taehr-reqh taught. Which one of these should be our prey?"

Master Tohr'Quinn was right to ask me. After searching through the taehr-reqh's memories, I found what I should look for in stehr-reqh leather and scales.

After sorting through the many stehr-reqh, I found a couple large ones, laying entwined with each other. Both of them had many scales, more small and fewer large, that weren't cracked or otherwise impaired.

I turned towards the two stehr-reqh. "About thirty-four paces in that direction."

No sooner did the words leave my mouth than the sight was yanked from my mind and I was left with fuzzy blotches. I heard footsteps, but before I could protest, Master Tohr'Quinn spoke.

"You have a new ally now," came the strong, commanding whisper. "Strategize with him."

Ohl'Leiz, Ohl'Zha, and Teqh'Quieh stopped in their tracks and congregated around me. Ohl'Leiz was the one to speak up first.

"Ok, Kah'Zheil," he started. "It's your first hunt with the squad and Teqh'Quieh is still pretty new, so we'll leave the strategizing mostly up to you."

Feeling burdened by the sudden weight of responsibility, I was slow to speak, so Teqh'Quieh spoke for us.

"There are only two stehr-reqh, so Ohl'Leiz, Ohl'Zha, and I could take them out using the same strategy you saw us use the first time," Teqh'Quieh offered. "So where do you want to fit in?"

"Uhh... I guess I'll help where I can with lightning," I answered, a little unsure of it myself.

"Well, everyone starts somewhere. Get going, all of you. I'll be watching." With those words from Master Tohr'Quinn, we split up.

Teqh'Quieh and I were more towards the center, quietly running around other stehr-reqh on the way to our mark. Ohl'Zha and Ohl'Leiz, with a better sense of direction, each took a more out of the way route, to flank the stehr-reqh from the other sides.

Teqh'Quieh and I arrived at our mark and, fortunately for us, they were still sleeping. Just a bit longer and I sensed Ohl'Zha and Ohl'Leiz move into position on the opposite sides of the stehr-reqh. As it was last time, Ohl'Zha leapt at one of the stehr-reqh without even a signal. And, also the same as last time, Teqh'Quieh hit with lightning as Ohl'Zha struck, as if she knew exactly when Ohl'Zha would move. When I saw this, I readied my own lightning spell.

It was a scene from the past. As Ohl'Zha was slashing at the stunned stehr-reqh, an arc of lightning sprung from Ohl'Leiz and hit the other stehr-reqh, rendering it immobile, or so I thought. The stehr-reqh moved and raised a leg in order to crush Ohl'Zha. There was my chance.

I aimed for the exposed underbelly of the stehr-reqh and launched my lightning. It hit true, and as an added bonus, managed to knock it off balance away from Ohl'Zha. With that stehr-reqh dazed, and the other one nearly recovered from the stun of lightning, Ohl'Zha leapt towards the weak spot of the toppled stehr-reqh and plunged his pinsirs into its heart, ending its life.

With Ohl'Zha's back exposed to the recovered stehr-reqh, I had to do something, so I concentrated my energy into a flare and aimed towards the head of the stehr-reqh.

It hit true, and knocked the stehr-reqh's head up, leaving its neck exposed. Ohl'Zha reacted surprisingly quickly to this and sent his pinsirs into the throat of the stehr-reqh, and its fate was sealed. The two stehr-reqh lay motionless on the ground and the surrounding stehr-reqh were scared off by the noise.

Master Tohr'Quinn eliminated the immediate darkness by creating a light.

"Well, they're dead," Master Tohr'Quinn started. "And the materials are intact."

Master Tohr'Quinn walked around to the head of the stehr-reqh I blasted.

"Well, that's interesting."

We gathered around the stehr-reqh's head for a closer look. When I got close, I saw what Master Tohr'Quinn referred to. The scales along the jaw line of the stehr-reqh had a brilliant shine to them; the mark of the flare that exposed its neck.

"Someone ought to save that."

Immediately, Teqh'Quieh set to work on extracting the affected scales.

"Teqh'Quieh, I didn't know you had an interest in jewelry!" teased Master Tohr'Quinn.

"I... I-it's for research!" Teqh'Quieh stammered, almost blushing even through her majin skin. "I want to know why they shine the way they do!"

Master Tohr'Quinn, quick on the draw, asked, "Then why are you only extracting the shining scales?"

"I-I-I... I was getting to the other ones in a bit!" Teqh'Quieh was obviously flustered now.

Done having his fun, Master Tohr'Quinn turned to the Ohl' brothers and I. "You, boys. Skin the stehr-reqh and carry as much as you can, with priority given to scales and skin over meat. When we get back, we're going to build quite a tent for Teqh'Quieh here."

 **Chapter 7: Life in the Tribe**

When had we skinned the two stehr-reqh and picked up everything we could carry, we headed back to the camp. The entire way, Ohl'Leiz and Ohl'Zha were practicing the very technique that sent us on this hunt in the first place. Thankfully, Ohl'Zha had gotten better at aiming the deflection so Teqh'Quieh and I didn't have to deflect as often. Every-so-often, a flare would head towards Master Tohr'Quinn's back and we would all hold our breath, only to find that he had dodged with the slightest movements, never abrupt and always smooth and subtle.

When we weren't deflecting flares, I asked Teqh'Quieh about the stack of books she was carrying earlier.

"Most of them are for my notes and research," she told me.

"Research?"

"Yeah, different things like the creatures and uses for different materials." She shot a small glare at Master Tohr'Quinn's back, to which he chuckled, causing Teqh'Quieh's eyes to shoot downwards. She continued, "And I have some books for majin fighting techniques as well."

"Majin fighting techniques?" I asked casually.

"Spells and techniques with the pinsirs," she answered.

After some thinking, I decided I would ask to have a look at her books after we were done setting up her tent.

Soon after, we could see the shapes of tents forming in the distance. There was a faint red glow blanketing the horizon. I didn't know how I hadn't noticed it the first time, but then I remembered my vision and fainting episode and figured that's what had caused it.

At the edge of camp, I could just make out two figures standing, their silhouettes outlined by the orange glow behind camp.

"What makes that orange glow behind camp?" I asked without thinking.

This time it was Master Tohr'Quinn who answered. "There's a giant crack in the ground that's filled with lava. That's also why it's so warm here."

Master Tohr'Quinn took another step forward, and suddenly a book hit him square in the face, knocking him back.

As the barrage of books hit Master Tohr'Quinn in various, sometimes very painful, places, I asked Teqh'Quieh why Master Tohr'Quinn didn't dodge them.

"He doesn't because if he did, that would make mother angry," she answered, head down, doing the majin version of blushing.

"Your mother?" I inquired.

"Teihlah'Keqh," she answered soberly.

We walked to Master Tohr'Quinn's side and watched as all the books hit him with remarkable accuracy and power, and I wondered how a mage could have such an amazing throwing arm. At the end of the barrage was a large sack filled with several stones to give it some weight. If all the books before hadn't knocked the wind out of Master Tohr'Quinn, that sure did.

"Thank you, mother!" Teqh'Quieh called out.

"They're from the kahnten!" Teihlah'Keqh answered back as she twirled on her way back to her tent, her hair flowing outwards behind her.

"Kahnten?" I asked.

"It means 'clan members'," Teqh'Quieh answered. "Mother dislikes saying neighbors. I don't know why; she's just weird like that."

Ohl'Zha and Ohl'Leiz tended to Master Tohr'Quinn and helped him up as he gulped down another potion of healing. I created a ball of light and helped Teqh'Quieh put the books into the sack.

I read the titles of some of the books as I handed them to Teqh'Quieh.

 _100 Recipes for 100 Creatures_. At this, I wondered what else you could do to monster meat other than cook it with fire.

 _Magical Properties of Flesh and Bone: Volume 1_. This one just looked way too boring for me to read through, so I didn't give it any real thought.

 _Destructive Spells for the Destructive Majician_ was the title of the third book I picked up. I would have flipped through it a bit had Teqh'Quieh not grabbed it out of my hand and shoved it into the sack.

"Well, looks like that's all the books," I commented.

"I'm ready to move on as well," Master Tohr'Quinn stated as he got up and hoisted the sack of books on his back. "So, Teqh'Quieh, what do you want in your new tent?"

"I... well... I want a place to put books where they won't fall over. And a space to sleep... and that's really all I can think of," she answered, caught off guard by Master Tohr'Quinn's question.

"Kah'Zheil can take care of the design," Master Tohr'Quinn stated, then he turned to me and asked, "Can't you, Kah'Zheil?"

"I uhh... Yes, master." It would give me something to do anyways, and I had already thought of doing it, so why not?

"I'm sure Ohl'Zha and Ohl'Leiz," Master Tohr'Quinn said their names with a tone that sent a shiver down my spine, "won't mind building your tent for you, Teqh'Quieh."

Instantly and in unison, they snapped to attention from whatever they were doing earlier and said, "Yes, sir!" with a tremble in their voices.

"Okay, Teqh'Quieh, find the spot where you want your new tent," Tohr'Quinn started. "Kah'Zheil, any suggestions?"

"Uh... somewhere with a stalagmite? For a bookshelf?" I was looking through the taehr-reqh's information on building a tent and was finding many strange bits of furniture that I couldn't remember seeing myself.

"Okay..." With that, Teqh'Quieh lead the way to a space with two stalagmite relatively close to each other.

"We'll build it here," she said, with a tremble of anticipation in her voice.

"Correction!" Master Tohr'Quinn said comically. "Ohl'Leiz and Ohl'Zha will build it here!"

With that, Master Tohr'Quinn put me in charge, and left the books and us four there to work. Teqh'Quieh was left looking through her new books and writing down information in her notebook while I taught Ohl'Leiz and Ohl'Zha how to build and carve stone.

I focused and plunged one of my pinsirs into a stalagmite. Then, using that as a step, I climbed up to about one and a half body lengths and showed them what we'd do to make Teqh'Quieh her bookshelves.

"First, focus your energy into the pinsir." As I taught them, I was doing a demonstration. "And then slice as much stone off as you can. We'll use those as pillars and carve book shelves into the new spaces."

While they were doing that, I took note of just how much material we had and thought about how much space it would cover. I then marked the places where we should have pillars; we would need about three of them.

"Hey, Ohl'Zha and Ohl'Leiz, make sure we have enough stone for three sturdy pillars."

"On it, boss," Ohl'Leiz said playfully, his voice communicating that he was hard at work.

When they were done, I told them to sharpen one end of each staff of stone and stick about five in each spot I marked.

I observed the smooth walls that Ohl'Leiz and Ohl'Zha carved out for the book shelves.

"This is pretty nice," I commented.

"Yeah..." Teqh'Quieh had walked up beside me, having finished looking at her books.

"I should go attach all the leather to itself," I said.

"I'll help you."

And so, I taught Teqh'Quieh how to do leatherwork without needles or thread; just cut strips of leather off to replace the thread and use the pinsirs to cut holes where the strips can go. Soon, we had a tent skin to be proud of.

With that done, we carried it over to the staves. With them so tall, we had to take them back down and put the leather on top first. After that, we all pulled the staves up together and suddenly, Teqh'Quieh had a new tent, at least, almost.

"Go attach the rest up above the top of the shelves, you two," I ordered Ohl'Zha and Ohl'Leiz.

Ohl'Zha was particularly quick about his side. Being an up close fighter, he had better muscles than Ohl'Leiz and was able to get up and pin the leather to the stalagmite with a bit from a leftover staff.

Ohl'Leiz did the same thing, although he chose to concentrate and didn't go up as gracefully or skillfully as Ohl'Zha. In the end, however, Teqh'Quieh's tent was finished and the last thing to do was to carve out the last bricks from the book shelf. I did that personally, feeling somewhat guilty for making them do all that work.

It seemed more magnificent than all the other tents. It had scales all around the leather and was much bigger than normal tents used for basic housing. Then, I remembered the shining scales.

 _I used flare and that happened, right?_ I asked myself. Experimentally, I walked up to the tent and used the same energy for a flare and focused on the scales. To my surprise, after being hit with the spell, they took on the same shine.

"In the book _Magical Properties of Flesh and Bone_ it says that some spells have an adverse effect on certain creatures," Teqh'Quieh started. "I guess flare makes stehr-reqh scales shine."

We decided it'd be fun to make all of them shine the same, so we did, and ended up tiring ourselves out to near exhaustion.

A little while later, while resting, we all felt a large presence coming from the camp. To our surprise, Master Tohr'Quinn was leading half the camp towards Teqh'Quieh's tent, with all of them carrying one or two books under their arms.

"No one loves books and research as much as you do, Teqh'Quieh. So I convinced everyone to let you keep their books on your new book shelf."

I looked over to Teqh'Quieh and she was clearly awestruck. In the midst of the awkward silence, I lit a light so everyone could see each other with their eyes. Upon doing so, there was a collective gasp from the clan. Without meaning to, I had created enough light to show off Teqh'Quieh's shining tent.

It certainly was beautiful, with many shades of color due to the magical energies the scales were holding. There were murmurs among the clan. 'Amazing!' and 'Gorgeous...' That sort of thing. Suddenly, we all felt proud of the work we did. Teqh'Quieh even smiled. A bright, beaming smile, like she had forgotten why she would have ever been mad at Ohl'Zha and Ohl'Leiz.

After everyone went back, I stayed behind with Teqh'Quieh to read through the book _Destructive Spells for the Destructive Majician_. Later, I thought, we would have to practice these spells.

This was a good first day in the life of the tribe.

 **Chapter 8: Looming Nightmare**

 _Teqh'Quieh and I were reading from her books in the light of my fire, trying to decide on new battle strategies against various opponents; stehr-reqh, rohl-reqh, various types of 'qklek, and other majin, namely the Ohl brothers. If they got into trouble, it fell on one of us to set them straight, and sometimes it would boil down into restraining them with ice. Suddenly, without warning, a figure appeared behind Teqh'Quieh and slashed the back of her neck._

Then I bolted straight up out of my blanket in a cold sweat. Instantly, I had pinsirs ready and willing, but there was no one there. Teqh'Quieh was reading, as usual, and otherwise, there was nothing moving.

"Another of your dreams?" Teqh'Quieh asked without looking up from her book.

"Yeah," I replied. It had been about two years since I had joined the Degh-Kryst, which meant fire crystal. I was about ten years old now. When I learned the meaning, I found it odd that 'crystal' seemed to be taken directly from 'kryst', but that's not important right now. Instead of making a tent of my own, Teqh'Quieh decided it'd be okay for me to live in her tent since it's so spacious.

"What was it this time?"

"The back of your neck got slashed open," I replied blandly. My nightmares have become more and more common ever since the messenger came to Degh-Kryst.

"Beings clad in fire will come to destroy your village. Your only hope is to escape," he'd said. Some of us believed him, some of us didn't. Ultimately, no one moved from the comfort of home and eventually we marked him off as some crazy fool.

The adults of Degh-Kryst, and the Ohl brothers, always teased us about being so mature. For me, it was probably the fact that I didn't grow up around kids before waking up to hunger which lead me to hunt and fight. For Teqh'Quieh, I just always assumed it was because she was compensating for her insane mother, who made it a habit of visiting us every single day and teasing us about how cute we look together. For some reason, Teqh'Quieh was always defensive about this and hurried Teihlah'Keqh out every time she came.

I broke the silence. "Do you remember that messenger from a year ago?"

"Mr. 'Beings-clad-in-fire'?" she asked, jokingly. Teqh'Quieh didn't believe, or maybe didn't want to believe, that the messenger could be right.

"Well," I continued, "Do you remember how I fainted when I first came to Degh-Kryst?"

"How could I not?" Teqh'Quieh replied with a giggle. "You fell out of your bed."

Ignoring that comment, I continued. "I fainted because I had a vision of Degh-Kryst in flames."

This seemed to make something snap in Teqh'Quieh. "Get up. We have to go talk to the elders." She grabbed my wrist and forced me up.

"But why?" I asked mid-stand.

"You're 'The Bringer', remember? Maybe it's some sort of prophecy."

She had a good point, but I wasn't inclined to believe it.

"Maybe it was a mix-up with the taehr-reqh's memories," I said, battling fear with logic.

"Then he saw the fire beings destroying his village or something."

I should have known better than to try to argue against Teqh'Quieh with logic. "Let's at least wait until everyone wakes up."

She agreed to this, so we looked through books while we waited for the telltale signs of rousing life. When we could feel people getting up and going through their morning routines, we decided it was a good time to get ready ourselves.

A little bit later, we moved out and found Master Tohr'Quinn in his tent.

"Master, we need to speak to the elders," Teqh'Quieh said sternly as she opened the tent flap.

Oddly enough, Master Tohr'Quinn was just now waking up himself. Usually, he'd be awake already for one reason or another.

"Just... let me put armor on..." Master Tohr'Quinn said groggily.

Teqh'Quieh and I waited outside his tent.

"This is odd," She commented.

"Yeah," I replied. "Did we hunt earlier?"

"No. Doesn't matter. Master doesn't involve himself in our hunts."

This was true. Master always let us handle it ourselves. He said that if he thought we needed help, he'd jump in, but I'd never seen him fight. I guess it meant that we were already a pretty good team.

Master Tohr'Quinn appeared through the tent flaps. "Now, tell me. Why do you need to speak to the elders?"

"Kah'Zheil has something important to tell them," Teqh'Quieh offered.

Satisfied with that, Tohr'Quinn led us to the elders, who were sitting in the same spot they were in two years ago when I had my name ceremony.

Like two years ago, they spoke in unison. "Sit," they said, and so I did.

I didn't wait for an invitation.

"Before I came to the Degh-Kryst, I met a taehr-reqh who taught me everything I knew, at the time, by giving me his memories. In all that information was an accidental slip that he didn't want me to see; his village, being torn to shreds and burnt to ashes by these beings with fiery armor. The first day I came to Degh-Kryst, I had a vision of the entire camp blanketed with flames, just as in the taehr-reqh's memory." I had said all that I had to say.

The two elders appraised me with a solemn look in their eyes. "Kah'Zheil..."

It had been two years since they had spoken my name and I trembled with each syllable.

"The taehr-reqh were no ordinary creatures. They were prophets, and the only race we know who can transfer memories and skills. Just as we have names that guide us through our destiny, they had their visions to show them theirs. Your friend knew he would die and left it to you to bring us this message."

Their words brought a wave of guilt upon me. _If I had just known they were prophets!_ I thought to myself. _We could have had more time to prepare..._

"However," they continued, "this is not what your name had in store for you. We feel that you will have the choice between life and death in a great many situations, but beyond that, we cannot say."

Then they did something I didn't think they were physically capable of doing; they stood up, fluidly, as if they had just sat down only a moment before. They turned towards each other, in unison as always, and spoke.

"It is time," they paused, then they did something I never heard them do. They each spoke different words; the left said, 'sister', and the right, 'brother'.

So it was time. We would have to heed the messenger's warning and leave.

 **Chapter 9: The Coming of Fire**

Before we even got back to our tents, we could feel a large, ominous presence some distance away from the camp.

"What great timing, eh, Kah'Zheil?" It was Master Tohr'Quinn. I didn't respond to him. I knew what would happen if we didn't get our tribe out in time.

Everyone would be dead.

Teqh'Quieh and I ran back to our tent as fast as we could. Master Tohr'Quinn and the elders were taking care of warning everyone else. Our priority would be to gather what books we needed from the tent then to meet back up with the others.

When we arrived, I created a light and looked upon the tent we made two years ago. Memories of that first day flooded back to me; how Ohl'Zha and Ohl'Leiz destroyed Teqh'Quieh's tent, and the quest that followed. I remembered the magical properties of the scales and decided to take down the doors of the tent to use as we might need.

Inside, we took the important books - notes that Teqh'Quieh had been compiling for the last few years, books on battle tactics and monsters - and we took things of sentimental value to fill up space in our bags. We could always get rid of them later if we needed to.

For a moment, I thought I sensed a third presence.

"Teqh'Quieh?"

"I felt it, too."

"Be on your gua-" I was interrupted by a sudden gasp from Teqh'Quieh.

When I turned around, I saw Teqh'Quieh clutching at something in her stomach, with dark purple blood oozing from between the cracks in her fingers. I went into a rage and, without thinking, cast the spell called Noxious Cloud to target anything or anyone who wasn't Teqh'Quieh or me.

I heard a thud from in front of me. When the spell residue cleared, a body shimmered into existence, laying there motionless from the paralyzing poison of Noxious Cloud. I didn't care who he was, why he was here, or where he came from. I didn't know him, and he had hurt Teqh'Quieh.

I plunged my pinsir into his head, mercilessly ending his life. Then a woman appeared before me, and it was as if time had stopped. I recognized her as the woman from my vision of that bright, new world adorned with many colors. It was only now that I knew she was a goddess.

She wore blue, flowing robes, unaffected by gravity, and flowing whichever way they pleased. Amidst this chaos of fabric, her face shone through, unworldly, beautiful, and perfect.

"You have killed a man out of rage for your friend," she said. It was as if she spoke into my mind. I heard her voice, loud, clear, and gentle, but felt no sound vibrations in my body.

"And yet," she continued, "you can't do anything for your friend."

I remembered the state Teqh'Quieh was in and I looked over to her, frozen in time; a statue symbolizing pain and imminent death. I snapped to.

"Please!" I begged. "You're a goddess. You can save her!"

"I will do no such thing," she said.

She put me into a state of shock and rage with that statement. I lunged at her with both pinsirs drawn, intending to kill the goddess who had denied Teqh'Quieh life so cold-heartedly. Before I even got within a forearm's length of her, my body froze, mid-air, and floated towards her.

"I will unlock the power that has been sealed inside of you since you were born." She said this calmly, and as she did so, she put her index and middle finger to my forehead, almost child-like, and twisted as if she were turning a key.

"Be careful how you use this power," she warned. "Although it can be used for good or evil, it is power that will corrupt you if your will is not strong enough. Do not use it lightly."

The goddess disappeared and time resumed its natural course.

I was stunned for a moment, then I saw them before me... swirls of energy that flowed around everything. I saw thick ribbons of blue energy seeping through where Teqh'Quieh's blood flowed through her hands. I can't call it life-force. Many similar energies flowed around plenty of other inanimate objects. But what I saw, I could use.

I bent the energy seeping out of Teqh'Quieh to my will and forced it to heal her. Immediately the bleeding reversed, and over time her wound shut and she was healed. There ceased to be energy seeping out of her body.

I felt faint after using that power for the first time. When I tried to stand, I almost immediately fell back down, so that Teqh'Quieh had to help me stand until I regained myself. Without a word, we immediately started towards the other tents, intending to find the rest of squad one.

When I regained my strength enough to walk on my own, Teqh'Quieh released the restraints on her curiosity.

"What happened back there?"

"You were dying," I said bluntly. I was still mulling over the sight of the goddess and this 'power' she unlocked inside of me.

"You saved me," Teqh'Quieh mentioned.

"A goddess," I started. "She unlocked some sort of power inside me."

"You healed my wound?"

"Yeah," I answered. "But..." I didn't really want Teqh'Quieh to know the risk of using this power, so I stopped.

"But what?" she asked, determined to get an answer out of me. "There's something wrong with this power, isn't there?" A rhetorical question. "That's why you don't want to finish your sentence."

A while ago, I had come to the conclusion that there is just simply no point in hiding anything from Teqh'Quieh, since she would find out herself eventually.

"The goddess told me that if I had a weak will, the power would corrupt me as I used it... I guess fatigue is part of the corruption, since it was the first time I did it."

"Even though it's a power to heal," she said.

"Yeah."

We walked for a bit, then we started feeling other life forces from our tribe. A little bit more, and we felt the heat of battle. Instantly, our walk turned into a sprint.

When we got close, I discerned several enemies in a group to our front.

"How did they get here so fast!" I wasn't asking so much as complaining about it.

Teqh'Quieh had more practical ideas at mind.

"Can you fight?" she asked, preparing her pinsirs.

"Yeah, of course I-"

I was interrupted by three very bright flares encircling and trapping the enemies. When my eyes adjusted, I could barely make out the shadows of several invisible figures reflecting the flares. Teqh'Quieh caught on more quickly than I did.

"Ohl'Zha!" she yelled excitedly at the bouncing flares. Just then, someone else ran in and froze one of the enemy soldiers. "And Ohl'Leiz, too! This is what you've been working on all this time?" She was referring to their strange battle tactic.

"Oh, we're not done yet, Teqh!" Ohl'Leiz shouted, then gave the signal. "Let's shatter them, Zha!"

Instantly, one of the flares rebounded towards the frozen soldier. But, before it even hit, Ohl'Zha appeared in his shadow and kicked him towards the flare.

Chunks of ice flew everywhere. The soldier's body, what was left of it, lay motionless on the ground.

Teqh'Quieh and I got the picture and we froze two of the other soldiers. One after another, they met the same fate as their fallen comrade, leaving one soldier left. He didn't even stand a chance. Ohl'Leiz had fired one of his bright flares and Ohl'Zha was already in his shadow. Blood splattered. It was over in an instant.

"I modified that trick you showed me with flare, Teqh," Ohl'Leiz said. "Still can't manage five at once like you can, though." He smiled at this remark, already knowing that three powerful flares one after another was exceptional enough for someone our age.

"These were just scouts," Ohl'Zha reported.

"Yeah, they have hundreds of people in their main force. Maybe a few thousand." Ohl'Leiz continued, "We need to get the tribe and make a run for it."

When we reached the center of the camp, we found everyone in an array of complete chaos. Mostly, it was people running from tent to tent trying to pack everything they needed for travel and to set up a new camp should they escape; essentially weapons, weapon replacements, and cloaks and bags. We found the elders in the midst of the chaos, trying to keep order among the clan mates. I asked where Master Tohr'Quinn was and they both pointed towards one of the larger tents without breaking their rhythm.

From outside the tent, we could only hear slight murmurs. We entered and Master Tohr'Quinn motioned for us to sit beside the other two squads, and two people I personally have only seen once or twice.

Master Tohr'Quinn spoke.

"As you may or may not have guessed by now, that nonsense that the messenger from a while back warned us about was quite true. Foolishly, we adults kept it a secret and played it off as some silly joke by a crazy man."

 _Wait, hold on,_ I thought. _Why did I even bother telling them this was true again?_

"We did so because we weren't completely sure if we were to heed the man's warning. We weren't completely sure until Kah'Zheil here told us about a memory that a taehr-reqh accidentally gave him."

At this point, my ears were on fire.

"In this, the army that is currently on their way here destroyed the taehr-reqh's home, and now they are no more. We don't know what's to come in the future, but we'll have a better chance of surviving as a whole if we send you all to the majin academy." Master Tohr'Quinn paused for a moment, then continued, "I have here nine scrolls of returning, one for each of you. Just rip them apart and the magic will be released. If you wish, you may say your good-byes to the adults of the clan."

As Tohr'Quinn walked around to give each of us a scroll, we heard a scream and a fireball tore through the top of the tent, leaving a sunken center and glowing embers; a fitting first attack for an army of fire.

"Go! Now!"

I didn't need to think about it. There was just no way the clan would be destroyed if the adults were there, so I ripped my scroll in half, and I was thrust into a vortex of color. Rays of light zoomed past me, mostly colors of fire and brown caves.

Then the light ended, and I was in front of a gray, stone building. No adults. No sign. Just the nine of us kids and what we had to assume was the Majin Academy.


	31. Lovers and Game Masters

"Lovers and Game Masters"

 **Chapter 1**

The sun was shining high overhead, and there was a small figure running in the distance. It was an elf on a mission. Tris was running hard; she had to get back to her friend. She clutched the bag full of herbs closer to her chest and ran faster. She had a bow strung across her back, and a small dagger at her side. Her blue hair billowed out behind her, and her green eyes narrowed in focus.

She started moving through the dense wood at a pace unmatchable by any human. Her long ears twitched at the thought of her injured friend. She was moving faster than anyone, but it still wasn't fast enough. She sprinted harder. She knew she was only a short distance away, and this knowledge gave her more speed. That was when the high turtle slowly ambled out from behind the tree. She tripped and fell forward, hit the ground, and blacked out...

When she awoke it was dusk. She hurriedly tried to get up, but then fail over wailing... she had twisted her ankle badly.

Nearby, most of the new adventurers shied away from the eerie wail, but one of the knights passing by thought he should check it out. Alex prepared his giant two-handed axe as he ran into the forest.

The elf girl was sobbing in pain, her crushed hopes only making her feel worse. Then the knight popped out from behind a tree with a ferocious look on his face, and she screamed. The knight dropped his axe and covered his ears, he didn't look so scary now. The elf girl realized that the knight might be able to help her.

"Help me... please," the sobbing Tris choked out.

The knight saw her laying there, a delicate elf with luminescent skin, midnight blue hair and tear-filled eyes. Alex stumbled forward awkwardly.

"Please take these to my friend, he's over at the thorn forest, in the nearby house," she hurriedly blurted out, and shoved the bag of herbs at him. "He will know what to do, please hurry!"

Before Alex knew it, his legs had started moving, and he was running faster than he had thought possible. He clutched the bag of herbs; they still felt warm from the elf girl. He held them closer, feeling stronger just from that small bit of warmth. He kept running, and finally found the house.

Back in the grove of trees, Tris looked at the stars, holding onto that small glimmer of hope that it wasn't too late, and the knight would make it there on time. She couldn't bear the thought of the herbs arriving too late.

The knight barged into the house, with the bag of herbs still tight in his grasp. The residents of the home jumped, surprised that it wasn't an elf archer coming in, but a human knight. "An elf girl... told me to bring... these herbs here," he managed to pant out.

Then the mother of all of the elf children ran forward, snatched the herbs, and ran into the back. As she was went, she gave him a quick kiss on his cheek, saying, "Thank you, they aren't late after all... please tell Tris that."

He started walking back to the forest glade, then began running, faster and faster with the full moon shining down upon him. He was determined to get Tris to the harbor.

Alex finally made it to the glade where the elf girl was, and he was amazed at the sight. Her skin was glowing in the light of the moon, her eyes were closed in exhaustion, and the fireflies floating around her filling the air with a yellow light. As he walked closer, her eyes opened, like large emeralds, and he answered the question they were asking. "It got there in time. Now, will you let me help you to the harbor, Tris?"

"How did you know my name..." She started to blush, and ducked her head.

Alex picked her up, being careful of her ankle, and started walking toward the harbor with her.

After some time, they finally arrived, and went to have her ankle set. Then Alex volunteered to carry her home, and after a while she agreed.

Just outside of the hospital, she put an arm around his neck and kissed him. Alex was surprised by it, but he had also been hoping it would happen. He kissed her back, and walked into the forest, the ground before them bathed in moonlight.

 **Chapter 2**

One week later, on a sunny day in the middle of summer...

A familiar couple walked through the forest wearing beachwear. Alex was carrying Tris down to the beach for the annual music festival.

On the way there, they saw a lost human rogue. He was a towering 5'9" with short spiky brown hair, and piercing blue eyes. He had a purple swimsuit on, and he was holding a bow. He scratched the back of his head, slightly embarrassed, he asked, "Uhmmm... do you two know where the musical festival is?"

Alex nodded to him, saying, "Come with us, that's where we are headed. My name is Alex, and this is Tris."

The rogue turned redder for forgetting to introduce himself, and quickly blurted out, "My name's Leon."

Leon hopped along behind Alex, making sure he didn't lose sight of him. A short while later they arrived at the musical festival, and Leon got swept away by the crowd.

Tris wished him the best of luck, as he towered above everyone else and looked lonely dancing by himself. Tris pulled herself closer to Alex, her blue hair and sparkling green eyes drawing admiring looks from everyone.

Alex took her down to the ocean. He put her down away from the water, near a group of small children, who immediately ran over to Tris. Tris gave the children candy, and then pulled out a little jar of healing jelly to put on her ankle. Then she laid back to relax. Alex knew that she wanted to be alone for awhile, so he wandered back over into the crowd.

The children immediately started to build a sandcastle around Tris, building walls and battlements over her. A girl with purple eyes and purple hair peeked over the walls, and Tris opened her eyes.

The girl asked, "Are you alright?" Tris nodded, and the girl sat down next to her. She was wearing a bright green swimsuit.

Tris pulled some iced tea out of her bag and offered it to the girl, who took it gratefully and started to braid shells into Tris's hair. She said, "My name is Faith, what's yours?"

Tris said, "My name is Tris. Nice to meet you."

A human fighter, who went by the name of Arron, walked down the beach with his elven girlfriend Brigete. Arron's light blue hair matched his girlfriend's hair, which was the same color, but with pink highlights in it. Their twin pairs of yellow eyes scanned the beach and looked at each other lovingly. As they came near Tris, Brigete moved forward and looked at her ankle. Seeing what was wrong, she pulled out her wand and muttered a few incantations to make the ankle heal faster.

Tris was a bit surprised, but she accepted it and thanked Brigete, giving her some magical potions that she had with her. Arron and Brigete moved on down the beach, talking with each other.

A short while later Tris asked for Faith to help her over to the dance floor. Faith put Tris' arm over her shoulder and picked her up, and they moved slowly along.

Over by the music festival, Wisy had spotted Leon and dragged him over to the dance floor, since he was one of the only boys tall enough to dance with her. Alex spotted Tris moving his way, with Faith helping her, so he jogged over and picked her up.

The band, armed with guitars, turtle shells, chimes, and nearly every instrument imaginable, began to play a slow song. Many of the dancers deserted the floor, and Alex carried Tris with him to the middle of the empty space, shuffling around slowly, holding her gently yet securely.

A few hours later, the sun had gone down, but the music festival was in full swing under the light of the full moon. The fairies that came out of the forest joined the dancers in swirls of light and sparkling dust.

Faith watched Alex, still holding Tris, move around on the dance floor, and felt a small twinge of loneliness. A little fairy dropped down in front of her and pulled at her pinky finger. Faith got up and danced with the small fairy, her spirits lifting at a chance to dance with someone.

Wisy was swinging Leon around at full speed, finally he detached, and soared through the air, the glowing yellow tattoo on his right arm leaving a yellow streak through the air as he crashed down onto the sand, and fell soundly asleep. Wisy covered her mouth and giggled, and sat down next to him, propping his head up against a box. The fairies, upon seeing Leon pass out, immediately appeared near him and began pulling his face into funny expressions, while a large multitude of children giggled at the sight.

About an hour later, a baker put a large amount of bread loaves on the banquet table for the people at the festival to eat. A dark shadow with large eyes advanced upon the table, moving slowly, edging into the moonlight. A gray kobold child quietly climbed the table leg, and then in the blink of an eye grabbed a loaf of bread nearly as large as itself and scurried off into the shadows.

Down the beach about a mile away, a human rogue girl dressed in all black wandered around, inhaling the ocean air. Tall, slender, and lethal looking, Felony moved down the beach like a cat, away from the festival, her twin daggers shining by her side. Her long brown hair had black highlights spider-webbing through it. Her hazel eyes shone in the moonlight. As she heard crunching in the underbrush, she whipped around, pulling out both of her daggers, only to be confronted with a small kobold holding a large loaf of bread.

The gray kobold froze, whimpering as Felony advanced on it, sheathing her daggers. Her small feet made no noise. She patted the kobold on the head and tore off a quarter of the loaf for herself, and then vanished, leaving a confused kobold child holding three-fourths of a loaf of bread.

Down by the festival, it was getting a bit cool, and blankets were handed out to everyone. Leon finally woke up and would have moved, except for a sleeping Wisy, who had her head on his shoulder. So Leon simply went back to sleep. Rien passed Leon and Wisy. Seeing her sister asleep, she put a blanket over both of them and smiled knowingly to herself before she moved off.

Tris had fallen asleep in Alex's arms and was breathing softly. Alex sat down and covered them both up with the blanket that he had gotten from the helpful Rien. Alex started singing softly, and finally fell asleep under the stars.

Faith wandered off with her blanket, in search of a place to rest, feeling depressed. Then she saw a baby sheep all alone, and fell in love instantly. She picked it up and hugged it, covering herself and the sheep with the blanket. Soon she too fell asleep.

Arron and Brigete were lying on their backs, covered with a blanket. They were looking at the stars before they fell asleep.

Down at the end of the beach, Felony allowed herself a smile. It was finally quiet and no one was awake. She let her iron mask crumble, allowing her face to break into a full grin as she walked down the beach eating the bread.

 **Chapter 3**

1000 years ago...

She had battled her way through monsters, scaled mountains, crossed rivers, and now she was at her destination. Cis stood on a hill in the shadow of GM Castle. She'd had doubts about its existence before, when that fairly ragged person sold her that map. She was torn apart for a few minutes, deciding between buying the map and adventuring into the dead zone, or blowing the salesman off. In the end, her curiosity about the barren wasteland won out over her doubts.

Her initial scouting of the outside of the castle revealed gargoyles standing watch on the walls and one entrance. She checked her two daggers and the long bamboo staff across her back and, satisfied with her preparations, she slid into the castle, using her dexterity to her advantage by hiding on the ceiling whenever a patrol happened by.

She was a treasure hunter, a very specific kind of treasure hunter. She passed by rows upon rows of gold, mountains of gems, pools of coins, trees of diamonds. She entered the castle's kitchen, and her heart alarm went off. She smiled, her emerald eyes shining, her cat ears twitching, and her skinny black tail curling in delight. She saw a pair of heart alarms going off on top of the cabinet.

She hopped up on top of the cabinet and saw two jars, with hearts floating atop them. She noticed scribbling on the side of the two jars, one said 'Saphars' and the other 'Colbeagle'. She smiled wickedly and opened the two jars, cookies lay revealed within. She quickly ate the cookies, getting a strange, empowered feeling. She put the jars in her bag, and replaced them with a simple clay jar with a smiley face on the side of it and a thank you note written on the side.

She glided through the castle, her mission accomplished, and slid out the front gate. She was in the process of making it across the bridge when she heard a pair of deafening howls of rage erupt from the castle. Her hair stood on end and she started to run, pulling out the ancient bamboo staff with a small name inscribed on the end. The name started with 'X', but the rest was unreadable.

She heard the wind from something moving VERY fast, moving towards her, and she ran to the clearing, two black streaks pursuing her. As she moved into the clearing filled with moonlight, she turned around and saw two males of an unknown race come out of the shadows toward her.

They were both tall. One of them, red-eyed, was wearing green and holding a massive metal hammer. The other was wearing blue and had orange eyes with a feral look in them, his hands clutching a massive axe. She noticed that the hammer had a large S inscribed on it while the axe had a C. She smiled ruefully. Saphars and Colbeagle. She hadn't thought that both of them would come.

The one she assumed was Colbeagle spoke. "You, cat-girl. You have stolen our cookie jars, return them to us and we may show you mercy."

Cis shifted in her boots and replied, "I collect cookie jars, because I love them so much. They even love me back. If you want them, you will have to take them."

Saphars smiled gloatingly and stepped forward, silver armor spreading out from his hammer and covering his body, shrouding him with a green aura. Sneering, he said, "So, you dare to challenge us with your pitiful existence?"

Colbeagle also advanced, covered in a golden armor with a silver aura. He hefted his golden axe, saying, "You really think you can contend with our ban weapons? One scratch and you will be sent into oblivion, and your pitiful mortal weapons cannot even tarnish our armor."

To this, Cis smiled and moved forward, holding the bamboo staff - but it wasn't bamboo anymore. It was a wicked metal staff with bladed ends. Cis looked up behind the black metal shroud that was now covering her face, her black spiked gauntlets clutching the staff. She was enclosed in a skintight flexible armor stronger than anything any mortal was supposed to have, surrounded by a menacing red aura.

Saphars and Colbeagle were stood still in shock, exchanging worried glances. Saphars finally spoke up. "Mortal, where did you find that weapon?"

Cis looked up proudly and said, "Before my great(x6) grandfather was killed by his two friends, he met my great(x6) grandmother, and gave his staff to her. That's where I got it," she hissed.

Colbeagle stood uncomfortably for a moment, then charged at Cis, swinging his axe so rapidly it was a blur. Cis started to move, blocking Colbeagle's strike. She figured that the armor must give them stat boosts. She started swinging back, sending Colbeagle's axe flying.

"It seems like all you have is power, no amount of actual fighting experience. How very sad," she said with a disapproving look.

Saphars charged, swinging his hammer while saying, "We have plenty of experience, we just didn't want to waste it on you. But it seems that we have to."

Colbeagle picked up his axe and charged as well. She blocked both attacks, cutting through both of their armors, but not actually causing any real damage.

The night wore on, then it was daylight, then night again. And so it continued...

One month later...

Cis was panting and bleeding from multiple wounds; both Saphars and Colbeagle were in the same shape that she was.

Both of them charged, but Colbeagle dropped his axe and grabbed her, preventing her from moving. Saphars moved towards her, his metal hammer gleaming in the sunlight.

* * *

Saphars closed the book that he was holding, to the disappointment of all of the people nearby, who were enjoying the story being told by the GMs.

Saphars smiled with a large grin on his face and said, "I hope you all enjoyed the story. Colbeagle and I spent many months writing this book." He waved goodbye and vanished.

Tris got up and pulled Alex up after her. It was a week after the beach festival, and she could finally walk again thanks to Brigete and the healing jelly. She was finally wearing her ranger clothes again, and she enjoyed being able to walk around. "So Alex, what did you think of the story?"

"It was fine, although I'm a bit curious to why they stopped it there," he said, frowning.

"Well, why don't you ask them?" she said.

"Maybe I will," he said, putting his arms around her. And he walked her back to her home.

* * *

Back at GM Castle...

"Well Colbeagle, how do you think I told the story?" Saphars asked.

"I think you did just fine, Saphars. Hey, let's get cookies!"

Colbeagle swiftly moved to the kitchen, gargoyles scrambling out of his way as Saphars followed close behind.

As they came into the kitchen, they were greeted by the usual sight of one-hundred rare cookie jars, from all over the world. Cis moved out of the shadows, smiling, and asked, "Did you two have fun? I baked cookies, they should still be warm."

Both Colbeagle and Saphars moved toward their respective jars, while Cis moved to one of her ninety-eight jars and munched on a cookie, her emerald eyes shining and her tail curling.

 **Chapter 4**

Felony was moving through the forest towards a clearing, her hazel eyes blazing. She heard a screeching of metal and she whipped around, seeing a golem that was about to hit her fall over. Raeil stood up, his red eyes glinting in the moonlight. He was clutching a black blade with a silver line running along the middle of it. Its black hilt, glittering with rubies like demons' eyes, flared in the partial light.

Felony pulled out her daggers, unsure of this new rogue that had appeared from the shadows near her. Her hazel eyes met his red ones, and they stared at each other like two strange cats. Finally, Raeil backed away into the shadows, and Felony did the same.

* * *

Raeil made it back to his part of the forest, pondering the fact that there was another rogue roaming the woods at night. He eagerly moved towards his tree, hunting for Kaylee. A human mage leaped from behind the tree and landed on his back. Her caramel-colored hair, defying gravity briefly, finally settled past her shoulders a moment after she landed. She had knowing blue eyes that glittered with large amounts of knowledge.

Kaylee rode on Raeil's back over to the table, where she had set out dinner, and they began to eat.

Raeil started the conversation. "Kaylee, I met another rogue in the forest tonight... she looked fairly dangerous."

Kaylee looked up quickly. "Do you think she will bother us?" she said.

To this, Raeil replied, "No, I don't think so, but we never can be too careful."

The rest of their dinner was finished in silence.

* * *

Back at the GM Castle, Cis was planting new trees and using her magic to accelerate their growth. Cis smiled, thinking about the practice sessions that the GMs had with her to keep their skills sharp. It only took about a day for them to beat her now, for they had improved quite a lot since the first time they had fought.

She sat back on her haunches thinking back to that day, 1000 years ago...

* * *

Saphars had moved towards her, hefting his ban hammer. As he lifted it she flinched away. She knew she was dead and there was no escape. She heard it whistling down, and braced for the inevitable. She heard a crash, but felt no pain. She slowly opened her emerald eyes.

Saphars was smiling at her, and then after a few minutes of silence he spoke. "How would you like to stay with us?"

Cis looked up in surprise, boggled by the fact that the people she spent the last month fighting would invite her to stay with them. Her eyes narrowed, trying to find any deception in his words, but found none.

"You see, it would be a pity to kill you. You are the only person in an eternity with gall enough to come to our castle and steal from us. Not only that, but fight us!" said Colbeagle, loosening his grip on Cis.

"You have shown us our weaknesses. Also, you gave us a thrill like no other. Besides, you helping us will be a good punishment for you," said both Saphars and Colbeagle at the same time.

Cis smiled. She could easily kill them both now that Colbeagle had let her go, but... she had enjoyed it too and wouldn't mind the company. "So... what now?" she asked in an inquiring tone.

Saphars moved forward and held her head, chanting. While he was chanting, she suddenly felt no grip from time, and she knew that her body had stopped aging. Her eyes widened in shock and she passed out.

Colbeagle picked her up and took her back to the castle with Saphars, to rest and regenerate.

* * *

Cis heard a crunch of a boot, snapping her out of her reverie. She had wandered miles away from the castle by then, planting trees while remembering. She quickly hid herself in a her trench coat, covering her head and body.

Ryu walked into the clearing, his standard-issue knight armor gleaming in the sunlight. His electric blue eyes were looking around with an obviously lost expression on his face. His black hair went down to his neck and he had a large, two-handed sword strapped across his back.

He was heading straight toward the GM Castle. Cis cursed quietly to herself, and she moved out from behind the tree.

Ryu's head snapped over to where Cis emerged from the forest, drawing his two-handed sword.

Cis used a soft voice, saying, "You seem lost traveler, are you looking to go somewhere? I can show you the way..."

Ryu didn't like the fact that a coat covered this guide, but he was willing to accept help, thinking to himself that it was better to meet an odd, suspicious guide, rather than none at all. He put his sword away, and Cis moved past him, beckoning.

An hour or so later she led him out of the forest and into the sunlight. Ryu moved past her, glad to see the sun again, and then remembered that he had neither asked his guide her name, nor thanked her. He turned around and discovered that he was alone. He scratched his head in puzzlement, he could have sworn that she was right behind him the second before he turned around.

Back in the forest where Cis met the traveler, she planted more trees, and created a bog that stretched for miles and miles, surrounding the castle. She moved towards the castle with the thought that the floating island was too small, since lost people nearly found the castle.

She made a disapproving look towards where she met the knight, and walked into the castle.

 **Chapter 5**

Alex opened his eyes, yawning. He ran his hand through Tris' long blue hair, admiring how soft and silky it was. Tris slowly opened her green eyes, looking up at Alex. Alex smiled warmly, saying, "Good morning, sleepyhead." As she playfully kicked him, he recalled what happened last night.

Faith had come over with a bunch of costumes, and pressed him and Tris into a play. While Alex objected at first, Faith mentioned that it was for all of the orphaned children that had no parents to take them anywhere. Alex smiled, recalling how Faith had actually managed to get Tris into that puffy dress. Although, Tris had her revenge for his mentioning how odd she looked in a dress. She got to apply Alex's stage makeup. Alex remembered looking in the mirror, to see an unnaturally white face and rose-red lips looking back at him.

Faith was sitting up in the window, already awake and looking eager to go somewhere.

Alex went over to the closet and opened it while Tris and Faith looked on with interest. Pulling out three fishing poles, Alex said, "We're going to go fishing."

Both Tris and Faith hopped up and ran out the door, shouting, "Race you there, SLOWPOKE!"

Alex ran out into the mid-morning sun, chasing both of the girls who were already far ahead. Alex shouted at the retreating girls, "WAIT UP! Do you expect me to carry your fishing poles for you?"

And to this Tris shouted back, "YES!"

Alex simply sighed and followed them.

* * *

Cis was lying back lazily in the sun, with the water of the river sliding by. She was out relaxing, since Saphars and Colbeagle were out having fun. As she hefted her pole and cast her line, she heard Saphars and Colbeagle laughing somewhere nearby. She was prepared for their mischief.

A moment later, a huge pillar of water dropped down on her. Or tried to, anyway. She scooped up two handfuls of mud and threw them. She heard two unpleasant-sounding moans and smiled, quite pleased with herself.

She moved into a dry spot, and hoped that Saphars and Colbeagle had learned their lesson about trying to get her wet. She HATED to get wet. She felt a tug on the tip of her pole and jerked it upwards, a fish gleaming in the sunlight. Her eyes sparkled at the sight of the fish. She used her magic to cook it and then stuck it in her mouth and scooted off towards a mountain.

* * *

Saphars and Colbeagle (after unsuccessfully trying to drench Cis with water) floated high into the sky, to play what can be described as a form of tennis, but with no ground to bounce the ball off of. They started swinging.

* * *

Faith had wandered off, away from Alex and Tris, who were sitting together in the sun by the stream. They were more interested in talking together than fishing. She sighed. She still had no one to be with. Her purple eyes seemed a little bit dark because she was thinking. She plopped down next to a tree by the river.

Just then, a warrior, who had been creeping up towards Faith, jumped out from behind the bushes, yelling at the top of his lungs, "RAWR!" Faith jumped up and instinctively punched him in the face. The red eyed, black haired warrior fell over clutching his nose. "Oww, Faith, what did you hit me so hard for?" Oshiha complained.

Faith covered her mouth when she realized she had hit her friend. "Oh my, I'm sorry Oshiha. Are you alright?"

Oshiha replied, "Yeah, I'm alright. And something interesting happened... I actually registered at the office, I'm finally a resident of Blueland now."

Faith had this odd feeling that she never had before. She looked up. . . she had hearts floating over her head, and noticed some floating over Oshiha's head. Quickly turning away because she was blushing, she muttered, "Oh, that's great. So you finally did it, did you?"

"Well then, let's fish!" Oshiha blurted his idea out, like always, and Faith smiled a little and pulled out her fishing pole.

* * *

Saphars returned the ball that Colbeagle had sent at him, hitting it with extreme force and shifting the clouds around him. They were using a lot of magic now to keep up with each other. The area they were playing in was saturated by magic.

Colbeagle swung, hitting the ball back to Saphars. The clouds around them had started to move in a circular pattern, with the exception of one rain cloud. Saphars returned the swing and the ball flew by the rain cloud... right into the large magic saturation area. In an instant a huge typhoon was going on.

"Uh oh." Both Saphars and Colbeagle looked at each other, dropped their bats and ran off. A little shining object fell off of Colbeagle's keychain.

* * *

Cis wandered over to a cave and went in. She had sensed the dense magic saturation above her and was taking no chances. Right as she entered, the huge typhoon developed, drenching the area in rain. Cis sighed at the GMs. They had caused another natural disaster. She pulled out a little book and made another mark inside with a short description. "Oh well, I might as well count them... It has been awhile." Cis settled down and started to read through the book.

* * *

Faith and Oshiha had jumped under a large ancient tree when the typhoon hit. Faith edged a little closer to Oshiha after they sat down. She hadn't brought any kind of jacket. Oshiha, however, had his large trench coat, like always.

Faith thought back to when she had first met him. She had stolen food, but got caught by the store manager. At that time, Oshiha had wandered in and simply paid for the food. Both Faith and the store manager were a bit confused over it, but Faith just followed him out.

She was snapped back to reality by being covered in what felt like a rug. Oshiha had put his trench coat on her. She moved all the way over and leaned on him. Soon she was asleep. He just held her as the storm raged and whipped through the trees.

* * *

A few hours later the storm subsided, and Cis came out of the cave. She was greeted by mud - and lots of it. She used her magic to heat up the mud so it became dirt and walked along.

She saw something shining in the bushes and grabbed it. It was a shining gold key and had an inscription on the side. The inscription read as follows: 'For a successful and stable environment, insert into pedestal.' And in smaller letters, 'Property of Colbeagle' was written. Cis smiled wickedly and ran off into the wilderness.

* * *

Back at GM castle, Saphars and Colbeagle had returned and grabbed their cookies. A short while after they had finished munching, they moved into an ancient room filled with torches.

"Well, Colbeagle, the preparations are complete. We are finally going to let outsiders into this world." Saphars was leaning against the wall.

Colbeagle said, "Well, we might as well leave the key here, it would be terrible if we misplaced it somewhere." Colbeagle reached inside his coat. "Uh oh."


	32. Cat Tails: The Book of Chaos

Cat Tails: The Book of Chaos

 **Chapter 1**

Cis plops down into a hammock, and pulls out her small chaos memory book, along with her ancient number counter.

"It's been a little while since I've looked at the amount of destruction those two have caused... I wonder..." She opens the book to a random page and settles into her hammock comfortably.

* * *

Black hair drifted across her vision as she watched Saphars and Colbeagle try to concoct something. Apparently they were baking. She fought to hold back a laugh and wondered just how well their cake would turn out.

Then there was a massive explosion and her ears were ringing. Saphars and Colbeagle were shouting something. She had a cat's hearing and was NOT pleased. Hissing at both of them, she hops up onto the top of the cabinets as green and purple smoke poured out from the oven.

The image gets blurry and she sneezes, ears flattening against her head. Her tail twitched nervously as suddenly a white streak shot out from the oven and out of the castle.

"AFTER THE CAKE!" Saphars bolted out of the room, with Colbeagle in hot pursuit.

"Oh dear... I suppose I should follow them... things might get forgotten if I'm not there to document it..."

Hopping off of the cabinets, she races out after them, her black hair fluttering from the air going by. She smelled the sweetness of the cake and heard the rapid footsteps of both Saphars and Colbeagle.

About an hour or so later she smelled orcs. "Oh, the Red Orc outpost is it? It's been a while since we have visited here." Looking toward the main building with her night-vision-blessed eyes she saw the cake... except it was a hundred times bigger. The orcs were staring at it as it hovered over their temple.

The rock temple had a large plate like object on it... suspiciously about the size of the cake. As the cake settled down upon it they all bowed before it. The orcs were all heavily muscled and in good shape. That's when Saphars and Colbeagle arrived. Saphars pulled out his mighty hammer and smashed the cake, shattering the temple, while Colbeagle sliced it rapidly. The orcs wailed in despair and pieces of cake landed in their mouths. Suddenly all of the orcs became fat.

"Oho... They've really done it now... they have turned the race that was in the fittest shape into the heaviest orcs I have ever seen!"

Most of the orcs' armor broke from their now large bellies, and they screamed at Saphars and Colbeagle in rage... who had conveniently vanished. And relations with the orcs have been hostile ever since...

* * *

Sighing, she closed her book and fell asleep under the shade of the fig tree... while the wind swayed her in her hammock.

 **Chapter 2**

Stretching again, Cis turned to a random place in her book. Both Saphars and Colbeagle were sleeping so nothing disastrous SHOULD happen, but it was a time to reflect on other disasters.

* * *

Saphars was making himself tea as he did every day. Rummaging through her cookie jar, Cis eyed him over her chocolate smeared lips. Colbeagle was trying to make soup... she had a feeling this wouldn't end well. Colbeagle NEVER cooked... but today he was trying to make a soup... out of magic.

Her large emerald eyes watched the two of them get closer to one another. Colbeagle with his cauldron and Saphars with his ginseng... this would be interesting. Her tail twitched with the approaching danger, but she said nothing. After all... they had told her, "We're not to hear any comments about our cooking unless it is good." So, scrambling to the top of the fridge, she watched them.

A distracted Colbeagle bumped into Saphars. A number of things happened then. The ginseng flew into the air and landed in the cauldron. Both Saphars and Colbeagle tried to curse, but some weird message with the words 'San Diego' popped up over their mouths.

The cauldron hissed and boiled and a large brown object shot out, crashing through the wall. Judging from the speed and angle, she figured it would land around the area where... THAT crystal was. Hopping out the new hole in the wall, she followed Saphars and Colbeagle, who were now in hot pursuit.

By the time they got there, the brown object was no where to be seen, but there was an odd-looking flower they had never seen before. They went back home. Cis stayed though. She had a feeling this had to do with them... besides they would be going straight to bed. She made sure of that.

As the moon arched over the sky, the flower twitched and something pulled itself out of the ground. It looked around with large black eyes seeming to be filled with tears... tears from the taste of Colbeagle's bad cooking, likely.

Laughing quietly to herself, she watched the brown object. It seemed to be throwing little objects down. Yawning, she curled up and went to sleep.

The next morning... there was such a cacophony of noise that she bolted up. There were so many brown objects now... they were ALL whining. Running from the immense noise, she made it back to the castle. Curling up on her bed she wondered what to tell them about it... well, when they asked, she would say...

"We're not to hear any comments about our cooking unless it is good."

Those brown things could hardly be considered good. She would call them... Mandragoras.

* * *

Stretching and tucking her book away safely, she curled up again. Maybe something exciting would happen tomorrow... With one last yawn she fell asleep.

 **Chapter 3**

Cis watched Saphars and Colbeagle as they were gardening, from her vantage point on one of the towers. She laid on her stomach absorbing the heat from the sun and the rocks beneath her. Her long black hair was spread out around her.

"Now that I think about it... there is something about them gardening in my book, isn't there?" Pulling the book out from her clothes, she thumbed through the pages. "Aha... here it is..."

As she put the elegant script before her eyes, she took one last look at Saphars and Colbeagle planting daisies. Nothing could happen with daisies, right?

* * *

It was a wonderful spring day. The sun was shining though clear skies. It had rained the other day, so the ground was moist, but not soaked. Saphars and Colbeagle were wearing some dirty clothes with wide-brimmed hats. She would have to chastise them later about their clothes. After all, They WERE important people. It wouldn't do for them to be seen like this.

They had gotten an idea to plant rosebushes over near the evil crystal. It was by some mage's house. Colbeagle cast a spell on him so he would be oblivious to them. She was lying on the roof of his cottage. It was a nice place... she might have to come back later.

She had her flea repellent with her in a nice jug. But the stupid things kept coming. Something was wrong with the spelled water. She would deal with Saphars later, she HATED fleas. They seemed to like watching her scratch her ears in discomfort every once and a while.

Mumbling to herself, she watched them patting the last mound. Saphars seemed to be casting something on the water. Although that water had a familiar smell something like... her flea repellent... Everything seemed to move in slow motion as the new mix of magic was dropped onto the plant... then trouble broke loose.

There was a massive ripping sound as thick vines with huge spikes broke through the magician's house. Hissing, Cis leapt off the house as a thorn shot through the space she was just in moments before. Both Saphars and Colbeagle had run off, taking their tools with them. The magician was making loud noises of dismay so, shrouding herself in darkness, Cis walked by him, dropping a large bag of gold.

Slinking off, she hurried back to the castle and got in a large comfortable armchair. Curling up she scratched at her ears. Stupid fleas...

* * *

She looked up from her book, yawning as a large shape grew out of the ground blocking the sun. It was a giant... daisy. Both Saphars and Colbeagle were snickering. Pulling out one of her knives, she threw it at the base, the metal flashing through the air. The huge daisy dropped into Colbeagle's pond.

Upon seeing this, Saphars gave a booming laugh and one of the huge petals from the flower got sucked into his mouth. He pounded his chest until it finally came out. Cis laughed quietly to herself. Not quite a disaster... She pulled on the chain to her knife; it shot through the air back to her. Tucking the knife and the book carefully away, she went off in search of another place to sun herself.

 **Chapter 4**

Cis sighed as she watched Saphars and Colbeagle put away the Christmas decorations. Christmas was over already... There had to be something to do besides put away all of the holly jolly things... Flipping through her book, her emerald eyes caught a story. "Ah yes... I nearly forgot about you..." Curling herself up with her black hair, she started to read.

* * *

She had a santa hat on. She smelled cookies in the air. Life. Was. Good.

She watched Saphars and Colbeagle give out presents to the young children of Alker Harbor, making sure the stockings filled with dangerous things stayed out of their reach as they got stockings full of cookies and toys.

Her swishing tail drew the interest of many of the children, who walked up and talked to her.

"Miss, Miss! Are you a cat?" one little girl asked.

"You could call me that." After she replied, the little girl climbed onto the box next to her and started scratching her between the ears.

Life. Is. Now. Great.

Purring and allowing herself to relax, she watched Saphars handle the stockings filled with fireworks, with Colbeagle nowhere to be found. Colbeagle and Saphars never really scratched her between the ears anymore. Getting scratched was far more important than checking up on them.

Moments later Colbeagle rode in on a motorcycle sleigh. One that coughed fire from the tail pipe.

Grabbing the children quickly and leaping away, Cis landed far out of the blast zone as all of the fireworks went off.

Most of the children watched the fireworks, but the little girl kept scratching her ears.

 _Hmm... Maybe I should go and live with her... She seems to know how to make my ears happy..._ That thought was destroyed as soon as the little girl grabbed her swinging tail.

Must. Not. Scratch. Girl.

"Ah... Could you please... not... grab that..."

"Oh, ok!" And then the girl resumed scratching her head.

Both Saphars and Colbeagle were putting out the fire that all of the fireworks had caused. Some teenager had rode off with Colbeagle's motorcycle... It suited the kid more anyways.

As she watched the town being extinguished, she purred contently from the little girl scratching her head.

* * *

"Ahh... I miss that little girl..."

Suddenly a pair of fingers was scratching between her ears... PERFECTLY.

Purring happily, she turned and found an elderly lady there.

"So you haven't changed at all... I see that you still like to be scratched between your ears..."

Smiling happily, Cis tucked away the book and allowed herself to enjoy the hands scratching her ears.

Life is... great.

 **Chapter 5**

Cis was curled next to the fireplace, the rain thundering outside. Her black hair shone in the firelight and her emerald eyes glinted with mischief.

Saphars and Colbeagle were outside trying to stop the rain, so she decided it was safer inside.

Opening her book, she flipped through it, and a little bunch of notes fell out. Picking them up and looking at them in the firelight, she started remembering.

* * *

It was a wonderfully sunny day, and they had gone to the Way to the Howling Ravine which got its name from... somewhere she rubbed her precious tail.

Saphars and Colbeagle seemed a little TOO eager to visit the harpies, but hopefully they would behave themselves today and not cause a rockslide or anything.

Saphars started speaking in a very soft soothing tone, talking to what seemed like the queen harpy of the brood.

Many of the smaller harpies swarmed Colbeagle after he pulled out a fish sandwich, and one of them managed to make off with it. Poor Colbeagle slumped to the ground, the victorious harpy chick nesting in his hair picking at the sandwich.

Curling up in one of the nests, she watched the theatrics. Saphars' mouth seemed to drop when the queen harpy pointed at a gigantic, grey and blue egg. Saphars reluctantly climbed to the top, sitting on it, his size expanding to keep the warmth in the egg.

Yawning, she took a small nap. Waking up about 30 minutes later, she looked out. It seemed that Colbeagle had finally taken out the PB&J sandwich, which the chicks didn't seem to have any interest in. Someone had put an egg in the spot she had curled around, and her body heat was warming it.

Saphars had his storybook out and he was reading to the egg. It was one of the most surprising things that she had ever seen. The queen harpy was watching approvingly and nodding to herself.

Hearing the words 'humpty dumpty', Cis shook her head. Well, it seems he had a little ways to go still, but it was better than most. She looked over at Colbeagle, the chicks had seemed to have taken his special tea and were flying off with it. Colbeagle was in hot pursuit, a sad look on his face at the loss of his tea.

"Well... we will be here a few days it seems..." She stretched and yawned, falling asleep.

The next day Saphars was still keeping vigil on the top of his egg, and the chicks were all sleeping on Colbeagle, the empty tea container on the ground next to them. The egg next to her was fairly warm and she was purring slightly.

The camp seemed to be bustling with activity, mothers going this way and that. Some of the harpies were sitting on eggs, others cleaning their roosts and nests. The sun was peeking over the cliffs, the giants were in the distance moving boulders, and far off on the mountains the basilisks were preparing to sun themselves. Gryphons were stretching, preparing to take flight in a nearby area, their brown wings shimmering in the morning light, the white tufts of feathers fluffing out on their powerful chests.

A few days later, after more of the same things, Cis' egg cracked open and a little harpy chick fluttered out. It was quickly appropriated by its mother, although it had some black feathers mixed in with the red, oddly enough.

About 2 hours later, a huge cracking sound echoed through the camp. It was coming from Saphars' egg. The grey and blue egg seemed to be shaking, a huge crack forming down the middle of it. Hopping off, Saphars looked at it, a smile slowly spreading on his face.

A few minutes later a HUGE giant pushed himself out of the egg and opened his eyes, and the first thing he saw was Saphars. Opening its mouth, it said the words that froze Saphars. "Momma..." As it said that, it opened its arms wide and tried to hug him.

Both Cis' and Colbeagle's jaws dropped at seeing it. Saphars turned an embarrassed red.

* * *

Tucking the note away, Cis curled up, peacefully asleep. A dark shadow snuck through the castle and pulled on a lamp, revealing a secret passageway, and headed down the spiraling steps into a large well lit room.

The huge figure turned to the shadow and opened its mouth...

"Momma!"


	33. Dance With Me

"Dance With Me"

She paced back and forth. He was late. Cis's long black hair sparkled with haphazardly placed gems. Her midnight black dress soaked in the light, clinging to her body like her rogue clothes normally did. She checked her two daggers, safely tucked away behind her back and accessible from the narrow slits on the side of her dress.

She heard horses clattering down the street, and her black cat ears twitched in the direction of the sound. Her black tail flicked back and forth in anticipation of the excitement to come. Finally, she heard knocking at her door. She opened it and her heart alarm went wild.

The Draconian she had met a few days earlier did not disappoint. He was dressed in a long, flowing black robe adorned with silver. Fit to how she would like it, she noticed. She decided she would forgive him for being late, because of all the effort he put forth.

The Draconian, by the name of Tauroun, held out his scaled hand. Cis took it and was swept off her feet, picked up by his enormous strength and whisked into the carriage.

The horses thundered along, and she wondered where he was taking her, but decided against asking. A few minutes later she was pleased she hadn't asked.

Tauroun held out his hand to help her get out of the carriage, and the sight took her breath away when she fully emerged. He had taken her to Draconian Hall, the most beautiful building in existence. Its gold arches were adorned with gems, its stairs made of the purest silver, there were platinum columns, and crystal lights that shown with their own inner power.

He escorted her down to the dance floor, her heart thundering and her stomach full of butterflies. Tauroun plucked her up and launched into the dancing. They began slow stepping, then they did elaborate twirls, and slowly they added moves until it was the most complex dance that anyone had ever seen. Most of the other people at Draconian Hall moved off of the dance floor or stopped to watch. Their dance defied all normal rules, and was using the entire room.

Cis thought Tauroun looked amazing, with his copper eyes, wonderful bronze scales, and long snow-white hair. She fell more in love with him than she thought was possible, as they twirled through the air bouncing off of the columns, flipping to the ceiling, and rounding the chandeliers.

Tauroun looked at Cis. Her magnificent emerald eyes sparkled with mischief, her dress now reflected like a crystal, sheathing her in light, her long raven black hair sparkled with gems, and her smile was full of pleasure.

They were running across the ceiling now; she was leading. They were whipping around gaining speed, and she reached out to the golden chains of the chandeliers, twirling down and down. Tauroun decided to take the lead and bounced them off of the chain. Twirling and flipping through the air, they were both using their mental powers and their dexterity to keep dancing. He finally decided to dance on the ground, where they slowed their twirling and whirling. He danced her up the stairs, with the crowd parting before them. As they twirled onto the balcony, he suddenly dipped her, and Cis was bathed in moonlight, her wide emerald eyes looking up at him. Tauroun bent over and kissed her, sharing a sweet embrace of love.


	34. Forgotten Pets

"Forgotten Pets"

A mighty axe shone in the brilliance of the sun beating down on the morning fields. The human boy wielding the axe struck a blow to a beast, making it cry out in anger and pain. "Do it now, Tark!" he shouted to his pet.

The orange pet summoned up a mighty fireball in front of him. The flames from the fireball arched off and flickered in the air as it was launched at the beast, striking it down.

The boy smiled happily, slinging his axe over his shoulder as he moved forward to take his loot from the beast. He found a sword and stuck it into his pack. He always wondered how his pack could manage to carry so many big things, and yet be so very tiny and strong. "Good job, boy," the boy said to his pet as he stood up, smiling. His pet gave a smile back.

But as he praised his pet, something caught his eye. An archer in the distance. It was an elf girl, a cute one. He watched as she skillfully aimed the tip of her arrow at the head of a zombie. She had a pet with her as well, a purple one that playfully swayed back and forth as it waited for the girl to give it orders.

He slowly moved closer as the girl aimed. "Hey!" he called out to her, but just as he did her arm tipped and the arrow launched, flying past the zombie and alerting it to her presence.

She swore under her breath as the zombie rushed towards her... or what was rushing for a zombie. It was more like a limp. "Get the zombie, Ali," she told her pet, and it cast two spells in close succession. One pulled the zombie in and the second coated it in ice, slowing the zombie down before a final strike, which shattered its frozen body.

As her pet did this, the human boy moved closer to the elf girl. "Oh... I thought they never missed," he said quietly to his pet, as he stood a few feet from her. His pet was intrigued by this other pet who could easily cast multiple skills, because he could only do one.

"I heard that," the elf girl growled in a low tone, making the boy jump.

"Um... uh... sorry," he said to her, lowering his head as she turned around to look at him.

"You better be! You made me miss, I never miss!" she roared at him, but then took in a deep breath to calm herself. She saw the expression of shock on the boy's face. He had never seen such a cute elf girl get so riled up before. "Sorry... I shouldn't have snapped... my therapist says I need to deal with my anger issues." This made the boy laugh nervously.

By this time the two pets had gone closer to one another, and were circling each other. They were looking each other over from head to tail tip. Both spun playfully around one another with slight smiles that grew. They hardly cared about the conversation that went on between their masters.

"So then... let me make it up to you," the boy told the girl.

"How do you plan to do that?" she asked him curiously.

"Well... if you let me... I would like to take you on a dungeon date," he told her, a blush appearing across his face.

"Sure. I'd like that, just... don't distract me again!" She said the last part firmly, and then gave a giggle.

He smiled at her and chuckled slightly. "Okay... let's get going then." With that the two of them left to the dungeon, but they left their pets behind by accident.

"Thank goodness... they're finally gone," Ali said, letting out a small sigh.

"Aaaah! A talking pet!" Tark shouted.

She shook her head. "Are you that stupid?" she asked him in a slightly annoyed tone.

"Oh wait... I talk too. Heh," he laughed nervously. "Sorry... I'm just a bit slower then most. I only know one skill... I guess I'm just unlucky," he told her sadly.

She smiled at him and giggled. "Well that explains it. I know three skills, that must make me three times as smart as you, ha!" she teased him.

He slumped into a depression with a whimper.

"Aw, I'm sorry," she said as she saw this, her tail wrapping around his tail. "I was only teasing."

He laughed and smiled. "I know... so was I."

"Oh, you." She suddenly pushed away from him and turned around in a huff. He snuck right up to her, his face slowly sidling up next to hers.

"Boo," he said quietly making her jump, she was not expecting him to do that. "So... want to go pick on some slimes?"

She smiled and gave a nod. "Why not?"

They both quickly floated to the slimes, looking at the poor little balls of goop with pity, as they were forced to roll slowly across the ground, while the pets got to float.

She first tapped one on the shoulder and it turned, she did the same thing on the other side. The slime got confused, it couldn't figure it out what was going on. They floated away, giggling and laughing between themselves.

They repeated this for several hours while their masters were on their date in the dungeon. They were so busy laughing and messing with the poor defenseless slimes that they hadn't noticed slimes slowly gathering together, hidden behind a tree. They weren't happy that these two pets were messing with them. Then suddenly, they all joined together into a giant slime. Slowly it moved over to Tark and Ali.

They were busy flying around each other in circles laughing, they didn't notice the giant slime until it came upon them. "Oh no," Tark said.

"Run!" Ali shouted, and they quickly flew away.

The slime gained on them, but they escaped through the portal. They quickly flew to where their masters had left them. They were panting heavily, but they were back in time for their masters' return.

"There you are, Tark... you behaved while I was gone, right?" The boy groaned, looking exhausted, his axe all dented up. Tark gave him a nervous nod.

"Time to go, Ali," the elf girl said to her pet. The wood of her bow was splintering. It was clear they had run into trouble in the dungeon. "Another time maybe?" she asked the boy with a bright smile, despite her exhausted composure.

He gave her a nod and smile. "Any time." He began to walk away, as did the girl.

The two pets lingered and gave each other one more tail hug before departing, they watched each other leave... Tark tripped on the air and made Ali giggle.

"Come, Tark. Quit showing off, we'll see them again... For now I need to rest and fix this stupid axe," the boy said as he departed back to town.


	35. Doomed Love

"Doomed Love"

In the small town called Alker Harbor, there was a boy and a girl, a rogue named Kyle, and a mage named Elizabeth. They were childhood friends. Ever since Kyle met Elizabeth, he liked her, but for years he didn't have the courage to confess his feelings to her. Until one day...

Elizabeth just suddenly asked out Kyle on a date. Kyle was shook up, but he regained his composure and accepted. As they walked, Kyle wondered why Elizabeth had suddenly asked him out, but it didn't matter now, because he was on a date with Elizabeth!

Elizabeth took Kyle everywhere. First they went to the amusement park and rode the rollercoaster, the ferris wheel and such. Then they went to watch the movies, even though Kyle got up a lot because he was still queasy from the rollercoaster ride. After they watched the movies, they noticed it was already dark outside. They went for a little walk under the moon in Alker Plains.

"Sorry for being selfish... you know, asking you out," said Elizabeth.

"Oh, it's ok, I had nothing to do today anyway," Kyle lied. "Today was really fun, except the rolle-"

Elizabeth kissed Kyle.

"I love you, Kyle. I have ever since I met you," Elizabeth confessed as tears slowly trickled down from her eyes. ''Sorry, and goodbye forever."

Elizabeth collapsed onto Kyle.

"Elizabeth! Wake up, come on, wake up!" cried Kyle, as tears fall down his cheeks. "Elizabeth! Elizabeth! Elizabeth...!"

Later on, Kyle learned the truth from her dad, that she had a disease. They had learned the time when she would die, and so she wished on her last day that she could be alone with Kyle.

The End


	36. Simple Date

"Simple Date"

"I didn't think you were going to show up tonight, Bella," Charles said.

"Well I wasn't sure if I really wanted to date a soldier. You come and go, and sometimes you are not sure when you will be back." Bella stood there, looking into his sky blue eyes that had captured her heart when she met him. "But how can I resist those blue eyes of yours? I figured one date would not be so bad."

They walked together through the field, toward the stream where he had set up a picnic dinner for both of them.

"Oh, Charles, this looks wonderful," Bella said, looking at the arrangement of food he had out.

They sat down and begin to eat, while talking and getting to know each other.

"Oh my, the sun is starting to set. I should be getting home, we have the harvest tomorrow. You are welcome to come if you would like."

"Harvesting crops, I have never done that before. I think it sounds nice, as long as I can be with you," Charles said, looking into Bella's deep green eyes.

Charles and Bella packed up the picnic and headed through the field. When they arrived at Bella's house, Charles took her by the hand and looked right into her eyes. "I had a great time tonight, Bella. I hope we can do this again." He kissed her and then walked to his car.

"Wow," was all Bella could say.


	37. Sacrifice and Rebirth

"Sacrifice and Rebirth"

As I watched the Necromancer ravage him and twist his flesh into atrocities that even the gods would cringe from, the way I felt about him became apparent. As if being struck by lightning, I realized that I loved him, and couldn't stand seeing tomorrow without him in it. My heart broke and my eyes wept as I staggered to my feet.

As I approached my friend, I witnessed as his left wing fell off. Knowing he didn't have the strength to hold much longer, I made a drastic move, and with my last remaining ounce of energy I conjured the strongest fireball I could muster and hurled it towards the dark assailant.

As Astrius's body fell to the ground, I heard the Necromancer scream. I saw nothing but the sleeve of his blackened kimono drifting in the breeze. With no strength left in my broken body, I collapsed onto Astrius. Everything faded into darkness... surely it was coming to claim us.

I awoke to find myself inside a quaint little house. No decorations hung from its walls, no paint filled its crevices, there was only a kitchen and the bedroom in which I awoke. When I walked to the window, I peered out and beheld the city known as Zakandia.

My memories started to drift to when I first came here, all those years ago... when I first met Astrius. He was sitting on a bench, shoving his face with an invention called a 'doughnut,' something he later told me, if eaten in the proper fashion, actually made the awful taste of healing potions bearable. From that point on, we were inseparable. I cannot recall how long it took for us to complete our given tasks from the citizens of Zakandia, and Zakandia Outpost, due to the fact we went back to town innumerable times so that he could get a refill for his 'doughnut' addiction. I didn't see what was so great about them, they were, in my opinion, just overcooked bread in the shape of circles. I pretended to like them though, because I liked him.

When the inventor of my love's favorite food, the doughnut, passed away sometime shortly after, Astrius wept. Not because a man had passed on, but because nobody else knew how to make doughnuts...

My thoughts cut off abruptly, and visions of the Necromancer distracted me. These, however were not visions of the past, they were of the future. I witnessed a great plague that swept over the Land of Blue, killing off almost all life on the floating island, or worse, turning them into monsters. My insights were cut short when the blacksmith who owned the house opened the door. He asked me to come into the kitchen, where he had set up a make-shift cot for Astrius to recuperate on.

My heart sunk into my stomach when I saw him lying there. He was covered in bandages nearly from head to toe, with a gash that cut down to the bone across his face. Due to the Necromancer's twisted spells, the remaining wing had been fused into his body and now stood out from his shoulder blade on the right side. The once beautiful white wing had turned blacker than night, and had grown exponentially as well. Instead of being a cute costume accessory, it now showed the characteristics of a real wing. It arched from his shoulder blade, to roughly the same level as his head, and stretched all the way down to his heel.

As I struggled to fight back sadness, I knew what had to be done... I had to find this Necromancer and finish him before he could cause anymore pain. The blacksmith kindly offered to repair my gear, and watch over Astrius while I was away, though he strongly urged me to stay. I couldn't though, too much was at risk. I had to at least try. Knowing Astrius was in good hands was enough for me. I prayed he would forgive me, should he wake up. I ran my fingers through his long black hair one last time... _I love you, baby._

 **The Path to Salvation**

I awoke several nights later, screaming out for Gehanna, to no avail. Nobody was around except for the local blacksmith who had treated my wounds. He informed me that she had left.

Curious where she had gone too, and fearing the worst, I checked the room the blacksmith said she had stayed in. My armor was laying on the bed, fully repaired and polished. Next to it was a plate of doughnuts with a note attached to them.

The note read: 'Hi, baby, I hope you're feeling better. I didn't know exactly how your friend had made these, but I thought I might give it a try. The blacksmith let me use his forge to cook the dough. I am sorry I'm not there to see you awaken, but my feelings for you left me no other option. The Necromancer still lives, and I am going to pursue him and make him pay for what he did to you. It's weird, you know? Even as I write this, I run the outcome of the confrontation with him over in my head, and the fight always ends the same way... when I saw you almost die, my heart sank and my feelings for you came to fruition. I know this might not be what you wanted to hear, but I wanted you to know just in case I... I love you, Astrius. Please stay there and rest.'

As I raced to put my equipment on, I noticed the giant wing that had been sticking out of my right shoulder. Knowing I couldn't fit my armor on, the blacksmith offered to make a few adjustments for me. I reluctantly accepted, as graciously as I could. He made me lay down and rest while he worked on it, as he said it wouldn't be ready until morning. I spent that night restless, wondering what had become of my Gehanna...

As dawn broke, the blacksmith came back into the house, and placed a set of beautifully crafted red armor next to me. I was amazed by the craftsmanship, though I don't know why I should have been surprised. He was a dwarf after all. It was dark, rose red, with golden etching throughout it.

Some of my injuries were still severe at the time, though he had managed to get some herbs that closed the wound on my face, only leaving the scar behind. He helped me get into a white and black Kimono to help hide my injuries. He had told me the best way to encounter my foe was to appear unscathed by his previous attempts. Surprisingly, it fit comfortably over the armor.

I thanked him kindly for everything he had done for the two of us, and gave him what little coin I had, but he forced me to take it back. Before I could offer a second time, he had pushed me out the door. Through the door I heard him say that Gehanna had gone north, towards the Gate of Alker. That was where I would encounter the Necromancer, put an end to all of this, and hopefully find Gehanna before it was too late.

 **Desolation Row**

The two-day journey left me weakened, and some of my wounds began to bleed again. As I reached the cliff side of the Gate of Alker, I hadn't found anyone around. Alker Harbor had been deserted, and Rien, or anybody else for that matter, had left no traces of where they went. And then came the silence... the ominous type of silence when you know something is about to happen.

The wing that had been fused into my body started wracking my body with terrible pain, forcing me to fall to one knee. As I struggled to fight past the pain and regain my footing, I heard a cynical laugh come from behind me. I mustered up the strength to turn around, and to my horror, I saw the one armed man in the black Kimono, who Gehanna and I had fought earlier in the week. He began taunting me.

"Aw, what's the matter? Big Bad Hero can't save the day? I guess it doesn't help that I have complete control over you, thanks to that wing of yours!" he exclaimed, and he pointed over to Gehanna, who was hanging from a rope rigged to hang over the edge of the island, laughing while he did it.

"Zelphyr, what did you do?! If you so much as-" I yelled, before being cut off by Zelphyr, who continued to strengthen the disease coursing through my veins, laughing as I fell my other knee in pain.

"You'll what? Kill me? Is that it? Don't make me laugh. Even with my one arm, you two are no match for me! What were you thinking?! Especially coming one at a time like that, I mean, come on, that's Day One stuff. You should know to never attack a super-villain by yourself!" He paused for a second, before changing his tone. "I'm glad you're here though, Astrius, there is something I wanted to show you. I think you will find most entertaining...or at least I will!"

"Enough talk, Zelphyr! Let's end this now!" I demanded, forcing myself to my feet.

"Ah, ah, ah, Astrius, don't be so hasty, the main event is still to come!" he said, with a pause for his irritating cynical laughter. "You see here, Astrius, old buddy? This is what we call a lose-lose situation! Through some tinkering with my abilities, I have made it so that if you kill me...YOU KILL YOURSELF!" he laughs once again, immensely.

"So, you kill me you die, we went over that. Now, what makes this a lose-lose situation, is that there is nothing you can do to save your precious Gehanna either! I have planted a sort of seed of corruption inside of her mind! With the snap of my finger, she'll have twenty-three seconds until she explodes! You try and save her, you both die! We don't have to worry about you though, because you'll be here safely with me! Ready... Set...?!" he exclaims, as if this moment is what he was made for.

"GO!" he yells, and he snaps his fingers and drops her off the side of the island. "Let's see if she'll explode before she hits the bottom!" Zelphyr was filled with delight as he did it.

"Gehanna! GEHANNA!" I screamed, struggling to break free from Zelphyr's hold on me.

"Nineteen seconds, hero!" he says, with a glee in his voice.

For a moment, time seemed to slow down as I listened to her screaming as she fell.

"Seventeen seconds to go until BOOM!" Zelphyr yells.

The thought of losing her tore me apart, and for a split second my strength returned to me. I had no time to think, as Zelphyr's clock ticked down to fifteen seconds. With all the strength I could muster, I hurled my sword at him, breaking his concentration long enough for me to run towards the cliff. Without a second's pause, I leaped from the side of the isle and flew as fast as I could towards my Gehanna.

Once I reached her, I saw a shining beam of light from her forehead, showing numbers counting down. The seed was to erupt in ten seconds. Fearing the inevitable, I held her tight, placed my forehead against hers, and thought about what she meant to me, what I would give to keep her from harm.

When I opened my eyes, I noticed the timer had extinguished from her forehead. It was at that moment that I knew what had happened. The bomb had switched to me instead of her. Eight seconds remained on the timer, so without hesitation I sped back towards the floating island of Blue.

As I set her down, she looked deep into my eyes, and somehow I think she knew what I was planning, because she started shaking her head. I had five seconds left.

I saw Zelphyr standing in the same spot I had left him in to go save Gehanna, so immediately I moved faster than I had ever gone before, crashed into Zelphyr and threw us both over the side of the island. I had four seconds left. I looked at Zelphyr, and saw him looking at my forehead. He knew what was going to happen. We had two seconds left. Zelphyr began laughing hysterically as I held him in an unrelenting embrace.

 **The Adventure Continues...**

I sat on the bench where Astrius and I first met each other. It has been eighteen years since Astrius threw himself off the cliff with the Necromancer, Zelphyr. I lost myself in thought, reflecting on our time spent together.

Just as I was drifting off to sleep, I was startled by a boy, no more than sixteen years old, who had stuck his hand inside my bag to try and steal a doughnut. As I looked at the boy's face, I noticed his glasses, rounded tea-shade sunglasses with a maroon tint. Astrius used to wear a similar pair...

I looked the boy up and down. The clothes he wore made it apparent to me that he was a thief, though I have to say, not a very successful one. The boy stood there, with half the doughnut sticking out of his mouth. I broke the tension and introduced myself.

"Hello there, young one, my name is Gehanna," I said with a smile on my face, to which the boy replied, "Hello, Gehanna! My name is Astrus! You look like a mighty powerful sorceress... You wanna go on an adventure together?"


	38. Under the Moon

"Under the Moon"

 **Chapter One: A Hero Rises with the New Moon**

The primroses had nearly wilted away. Winter would be coming soon. The crops would need to be carefully picked and secured in the storage towers, while looking out for mandragoras, which were common at this time of year. In no time at all, the fields would be covered in the thin blanket of snow and it would be impossible to pluck anything. There was so much work to do, and so little time to get it done.

Tsumi carried the basket of Lumina seeds to the barn, walking hastily so as to get in a few more moments of training before it got too cold. Her mother was preparing dinner, and she could smell the tender allure of the stew as it sat cooling on the windowsill.

"Be careful not to run too fast, dear. If you trip and fall, you'll have to start all over again," her mother shouted from the kitchen. As if by sheer coincidence, Tsumi stumbled and half a dozen seeds or so fell out of the basket. She pouted as she placed the basket on the ground and began scouting for the seeds.

"One, two, and three..." Tsumi counted. "Four, five, six... Hey where's the last one?" She quickly scanned the dirt to find the one seed that had gone missing. Suddenly, Tsumi felt someone tapping her shoulder.

"You looking for this?" said a familiar voice. She turned around to see her fateful friend Edward holding the last seed between his thumb and index finger.

Tsumi quickly plucked the seed out of his hand and flashed him a quick glare. "I didn't need your help, you know?" she exclaimed.

"You did, and you know it, too," Edward replied with a grin.

Edward was not like the other boys in the village. Firstly, he had always been there for Tsumi whenever she needed someone to help her. However, a more significant trait of his was that he was not a human. He was in fact an elf.

There was a time in Blueland where a human would never dare call an elf their ally and vice-versa, but much had happened since the great wars that plagued Tsumi's ancestors, although it was still quite strange for an elf to live in a human village.

Edward had appeared as a child on the village chief's doorstep fifteen years ago. None of the neighboring elfin villages had claimed to be missing a member, so it was decided that Edward would remain one of their villagers.

"Were you just about to go train?" he enquired.

"Yeah, you can come if you want," Tsumi responded gleefully, having completely forgotten her momentary spout of rage.

Edward put his hand on his forehead and brushed the trim of his hair out of his eyes. "I don't know why you keep doing this. It's not as if you're ever going to become a warrior, growing up in this village. But I guess if you want to waste your time training, I might as well accompany you."

Tsumi had always dreamt of becoming a warrior, leading the advanced Alker military force. She had been training with a wooden sword she made from the branch of a tree that had grown too large and had to be cut down. It would be hard work, but one day she would go to meet her idol, the great swordsman, Jose, so she could join his guild.

* * *

It was nightfall, and darkness had covered the entire village. The sky was dim because there was no moon this tonight. If one listened closely, he or she could hear the sound of cicadas crying in the autumn night. There was something ominous about this sound, kind of like it was some sort of omen. Either way, Tsumi had always had trouble falling asleep when the cicadas were out.

From the edge of her eye, Tsumi could see a light glimmering outside her window. _Who could be up at this hour?_ she thought to herself. Maybe it was bandits. Tsumi immediately dismissed the thought as being too preposterous, and tried to fall asleep again.

Suddenly, there was a loud crash coming from the kitchen, like glass hitting the ground and breaking into a thousand loose shards. Without giving it a second though, Tsumi raced out of bed. She quickly opened the door to her room and stepped into the kitchen. Something moved beside her and she turned to face it. A blunt object came smashing down on her head, and then everything went dark.

Tsumi awoke in the morning to find her mother missing, and the entire house turned upside down. Nevertheless, it was not only her house; the whole village had been attacked in the shadow of the night. Her head was throbbing; she wished she could make it stop. She wished she could have done something to stop them. There was a meeting in the town square that afternoon, and everyone in the village was obligated to attend.

"It appears that the village was ransacked by a band of traveling thieves during the course of the evening," the village chief announced. Tsumi stood in the middle of the crowd beside Edward. She wanted to know more about what had happened. She wanted her mother. "I am glad to tell you, however, that none of the crops were harmed and most of the animals are okay."

"What about the missing women?" shouted a man in the audience.

"Nothing was reported stolen from the storage house; could it really have been thieves?" bellowed an old, stout woman. A wave of insecurity and fear made its way through the crowd.

"Now, now... Settle down everyone," the chief continued. "It is believed that some of the women may have taken refuge somewhere during the attack. We will be sending out search parties as soon as crops are secured."

It now occurred to Tsumi that she was crying. Edward had grabbed her hand and was holding it tightly in order to comfort her.

"That's not good enough!" she screamed. "I want you to find my mother, and I want you to find her now!" Another wave passed through the crowd.

"Settle down, little girl. We will find your mother, but you wouldn't want us to be without supplies when winter rolls around?" the chief replied.

"I want to make sure that she's okay, and if you won't help me, I'm going down to Alker Harbor to find someone who will," shouted Tsumi as she ran off into the distance.

It was the next morning when Tsumi had finished packing her things and preparing for the journey down to the harbor. It would be a grueling trip, but she was willing to take it, even if she would have to do it alone. She placed her wooden sword inside of her sack and began to make her way towards the village gates.

Tsumi had just barely passed the post outside the outer wall, when she heard someone yelling behind her. She turned around to see Edward running towards her. He came up to her and stopped in his tracks.

"Wait, Tsumi. I'm coming with you," he said.

"But, Edward, you can't just leave the village like this. They need you to help repair the damaged buildings," Tsumi replied.

"I'm sorry, but this is something I have to do. You people took me in when no one else would. I'm going to help you find your mother."

"Edward," Tsumi exclaimed, "I don't want you coming with me just because you feel like you owe us one."

"But, Tsumi, I need to help you!" Edward said frantically.

"Do you, Edward? Because I only want you coming with me if you're putting your whole heart into this. Otherwise, you can stay here and take care of the villagers. I don't know what I'll be facing out there, but I know it's not pretty."

Edward put his hands around Tsumi's and gripped them tightly.

"I want to help," he declared with a shimmer in his eyes.

"Then let's go," Tsumi said with a smile, and she began to drag her lifelong friend along the road away from the village. And so... the two made their way out into the distance, to dangers unknown, and alleged enemies. To an adventure that would surpass all others.

 **Chapter Two: The Haunting**

"We've been walking for like five weeks," Tsumi whined as she dragged her feet along the old, dusty trail, which had not been used for what seemed like centuries. Edward, who had finally overtaken the fatigued girl, simply looked back and smiled at Tsumi's drastic change in attitude since their journey had begun.

"It's only been about two days, you know? And we stopped twice," Edward said with a grin. Tsumi simply glared at him for this remark, and stopped in her tracks.

"We only stopped because you thought you could get away with wearing sandals on a fifty mile trek," she stated in an irritable tone, as she stared at the worn out soles of Edward's old, bamboo sandals.

The boy immediately remembered his own folly and stopped in the dust, still looking forwards in order to avoid Tsumi's harsh gaze. He began to scan the horizon, as if he were searching for one particular cloud amongst many others.

"Hey, look at that bird!" Edward declared, while pointing his finger towards a group of clouds at to the West.

Tsumi put her hand on her forehead and let out a loud huff. "If you're trying to save yourself, you're already out of luck," she said, as she began to make her way farther down the path.

Edward continued to look up towards the sky, he pointed and made excited remarks. Tsumi simply continued to walk down the path, and sulk at her own tired feet.

"C'mon, Tsumi, just a quick look?" Edward yelled joyously.

"Fine, but if there's nothing there, I'm making you carry me the rest of the way," she replied.

Edward cringed, as he secretly dreaded the thought of having the move any further in his worn-out shoes.

Tsumi slowly moved her head up and opened her eyes wide. "I don't see anything," she said in a low, unenthusiastic tone.

"No, no... To the left. Look more towards the left," Edward replied intensely.

To her astonishment, she did seem to notice something flying up above the layer of the clouds. Yet it was much bigger than any bird she had ever seen before. She noticed the distinct outline of wings, but the other limbs seemed dissimilar with those of a bird. They almost appeared human in nature. However, that could not be.

"Wow, you're right. There is something there," Tsumi said, her mood appeared to be more uplifted. "I have an idea, let's see if we can follow it and find out where it lands." She began to run down the path at breakneck speed towards the creature, in hopes that she would catch a glimpse of the strange bird.

"I just can't believe that actually worked," Edward said as he looked down at the dusty path. Noticing that he was being left behind, he quickly straightened his back and began to kick the dust out of his heel by kicking his foot against the ground. "Wait a minute, Tsumi. I'm going to get stuck behind again!" he shouted after his exuberant partner.

* * *

Night had finally fallen, and the sun was just about to pass over the edge of the horizon, replaced by a sliver of moon that would be their only guide to the harbor. Tsumi had stopped, she had lost track of the path a while back and was now looking in the sky to see if she could relocate the flying phenomenon. Her hand went up against the back of her head, which she scratched out of sheer confusion.

"I can't believe it. I think we lost it," she yelled as she turned back towards Edward, who was up against a tree trying to catch his breath. "Maybe if you weren't so slow, we might have caught up with it."

"I'm sorry," Edward huffed, "I couldn't run anymore in these things." He took off both of his sandals and threw them off into a ditch. He was glad to be able to walk without the balls of his feet swelling. He collapsed onto the soft, lush grass, and spread his legs apart in either direction. "We might as well set up camp for the night. I doubt we'll be getting anywhere in the pitch dark."

"I guess you're right," Tsumi replied, and she began to search her bag for the tent. A shiver suddenly went down her spine as her hand passed right through the woven reeds of the bag. "I think we have a problem," she said a half-frantic voice.

"Why, what's wrong?" Edward asked, then his eyes suddenly fell upon the gigantic hole in the bag. "Oh my, don't tell me we lost the tent way back there."

Tears fell down Tsumi's cheeks. "That's not all we lost," she cried. It seemed that food supplies had been lost along with their shelter.

"Well, let's look at the bright side," Edward stated. "Maybe we'll be able to find some shelter way out here in the middle of the woods."

"There is no bright side," Tsumi wailed. "We have no food, no shelter, and we're going to die out here in the middle of the woods where some hikers will find our discarded corpses." She fell to her knees and began to sob.

"There, there Tsumi," Edward said in a soft tone as he patted her on the back. "I'm sure we'll find some way to survive."

Edward dragged the hopeless Tsumi through the thick woods as the sun finally went to bed and the creatures of the night began to stir and howl. They would have to find shelter soon. There was no way that they could survive out there when the monsters came out. Tsumi was a complete mess, and Edward could hardly handle a simple slime without being knocked out.

As if by pure chance, Edward suddenly seemed to see the outline of what appeared to be a cabin, located in the middle of the dense forest. The lights were out, and it appeared to be abandoned for some reason or another. Despite this, the two were not in a situation to be picky, and instead decided to stay for the night. The door was conveniently left unlocked, and there even appeared to be a supply of canned goods that had been left in the cellar.

"What are the chances of us finding a place like this in the woods, eh, Edward?" Tsumi said, while happily taking a bite out of some sliced mushroom, which was not quite to its expiration date.

Edward thought. "Well, considering the fact that we're here... I'd say the chances aren't that low after all." He grinned and laughed to himself.

"Don't get ahead of yourself. It's still your fault that we ended up in this mess," Tsumi grunted.

"Yes, ma'am," Edward uttered as he looked down at his feet.

It was well into the night before strange noises started to come from down in the cellar. Tsumi hopped out of bed and began to nudge Edward, who was sleeping on the couch in the living room. He briskly brushed her off and went back to sleep. Tsumi became aggravated and pulled the blanket out from under him, causing him to fall to the hard, wooden floor.

"I'm awake, I'm awake," he stuttered groggily.

"I heard something coming from the cellar. You don't think ghosts or anything haunt this place, do you? I mean... an abandoned cabin secluded in the middle of the woods... This is straight out of one of those horror novels, where the girl and guy get eaten by lycanthropes or something." Tsumi shuddered at the thought. She knew it was silly make such assumptions, but she could not help feeling there was something suspicious about this place.

"Nah, those mushrooms were probably just expired or something. Go back to bed," Edward rebutted. Something began to thump down in the cellar, and the noise traveled throughout the entire cabin. A strange sensation passed through Tsumi, like a wave of darkness had just enshrouded her soul.

"You felt that, right?" she cried frantically.

"Yeah, grab your sword. We're going in."

Tsumi grabbed her sword from the pouch on her back and raised it high up in the air, as she placed one foot on top of the end table.

"That's right. Whatever may be in there, we'll flush it out and see that it comes face to face with the justice that it deserves!" she proclaimed.

"Even if it's a ghost?" Edward inquired.

A bead of sweat went down Tsumi's forehead. "On second thought, why don't you open the door?" She smiled hesitantly.

"I thought so," Edward replied. He slowly pulled off the carpet that covered the cellar door, and held the handle in his left hand. Putting his weight on his knee, he slowly began to pull open the cellar door. What lay inside was something the two had never seen before, something they doubted anyone had ever seen before, something that might very well mean their doom...


	39. Two Rogues, a Fighter and a Mage

Two Rogues, a Fighter and a Mage

It was a sunny day at Zakandia Outpost. The sun was shining, the wind was calm, and Shikion was having a good day. A ray of light pierced the sky and out of nowhere appeared Saphars and Colbeagle.

"Hey, kid, how are things going?" asked Colbeagle.

Shikion smiled. "Well, things have been pretty good, so far I can't complain."

Saphars had a smile on his face, as always. "Oh, good news for me too, my heart alarm is going off. Now let's see who it is this time... perhaps it's one of my fangirls..." Suddenly Saphars' mood changed. "Colbeagle, cut it out! That's no way for a GM to act!"

Colbeagle started laughing. Even Shikion started laughing.

"Come on, Saphars, Colbeagle was just having a little fun is all. Besides... oh hey, my heart alarm is going off too, that's a surprise." Shikion looked around to see if anyone was there, or if Colbeagle was playing a trick on him too. His rogue skills gave him the sharp vision of a hawk. He saw something move in the distance, it was moving in his general direction, but it was too far away to see clearly. As it got closer, Shikion noticed some features.

"Well, who is it, kid? What's she look like?" Colbeagle said impatiently.

"It appears to be a lady mage. She's got long silver hair. So beautiful..." Shikion was entranced by the mage's beauty.

"Hey, Shikion, snap out of it! Colbeagle, he's not snapping out of it." Saphars shook Shikion to see if he would wake up. It didn't work. Using his giant warrior muscles, Colbeagle punched him in the gut. "Hey, don't hurt the kid like that, Col!"

Shikion pointed into the distance. "Over there, coming towards us." He went back to holding his stomach. _Note to self: Colbeagle is very strong... Owww..._

"Look alive, kid, your dream girl is almost here," Colbeagle said with a smirk.

"What do you mean, dream girl? We haven't even met yet." His face was turning red.

"Umm, Shikion, your 'dream girl' is about to get attacked..." Saphars said calmly.

Shikion dashed across the hills, using his awesome rogue speed, of course. As the mage came to the top of a hill, Shikion dashed up behind her and slashed at the goblin that had been chasing her. She was surprised at first, but then she was worried about the rogue.

The battle went on for a little while, but Shikion the rogue was victorious. Colbeagle and Saphars had made their way over, and had been watching for a while.

"Are you all right?" she asked in a calm voice. She looked beautiful, and her voice made his pain disappear like magic.

"Yeah, I'm fine," Shikion said, his face turning tomato red.

"My name is Aerie. Thanks for saving me." She smiled and blushed.

"I could never forgive myself if I let someone as beautiful as yourself get attacked by monsters." Shikion was smiling too, and before he could do anything, she kissed him.

"All right, congrats, kid!" Colbeagle said as he clapped his hands.

"So, Shikion, how was your day today?" Saphars said, also clapping his hands.

"It's been awesome." Shikion smiled, walking away with Aerie in his arms.


	40. Love Beyond Blueland

"Love Beyond Blueland"

 **Journal: Thursday, October 29th, 2009**

 _Just got out of math class. Argh! I hate calculus. I think the instructor has been going over the same content just to annoy me... I wish they would just move on. I feel like I'm in that movie_ 'Groundhog's Day' _sometimes!_

 _...Anyways, I'm waiting for the internet connection to get back up. I've been playing Luna for a few months now. It's been so fun, and it's nice to get away from the college atmosphere every once in a while. Okay, okay, a lot. I've been playing it while I wait for my Chemistry class, since I have a 2-hour break... and no money for lunch. *cough* As long as I get a seat near a corner, no one ever knows I'm playing a video game... but I hate it when people do see. Even today I can tell there's been several people who've looked at my monitor. Ugh, it's so annoying. Sometimes I think it's the same people too... It's especially annoying when they ask me what I was playing... It's so hard to talk to them... I just blush and mumble... I can never pull myself together in time to do anything else..._

 _Yeah, yeah. Some people say that video games are just a waste of your time - that there is no good that comes from it, that you never learn anything, that there are millions of better things to do. It's looked down upon by so many._

 _But I don't care. It's the one place where I feel where I belong. It's the one place where I can talk freely without mumbling or stumbling on my words, without blushing, without embarrassing myself. (At least not that much.) It's where I belong. It's my home._

 **LUNA Online: Monday, November 9th, 2009**

Our lovely Dezuki is leveling with an old friend, Silverstorm. Dezuki is an often hyperactive and zealous priest; Silverstorm is an adept scout, always on his toes. The two had met each other near the beginning, when they each started, and in almost no time they made a great team.

Silver finished off yet another monster, and knelt down to pick up a drop. "Ah-hah!" Silver held up a pair of purple gauntlets. "These look very fitting for such a lovely priestess. Would ya like 'em?"

"Well... if you don't need them, sure." Dezuki never liked to receive something when she felt like she didn't earn it.

"Of course I don't need 'em, it's not like I crossdress, now is it?" Silver tossed the gloves to Dezuki.

"Oh... hehe, well thanks!" She began to pull them on.

"Watch out behi-" Silver pulled out his bow and shot an arrow at an approaching mandagora behind Dezuki. "How many times do I need to tell you to watch yourself, Dez?"

"Eeek! Sorry." She finished pulling on the gauntlets.

"S'ok, just be careful." Silver double-winked before pulling out his twin daggers and resuming his usual frenzy. Dezuki had to work hard to keep up with him.

"Why... do I ever... bother giving you... Bless Wind," gasped Dezuki. She felt like she was going to trip from all of the running.

"Too fast for you?"

"No..."

"And I'm gunna be levelin' in a few more kills. Cool, ehh?"

"Oh!" Dezuki brightened up. "Yeah, cool. I'll probably go to bed after you level then, I'm tired."

"Heh, all right." Silver pulled off a front-flip as he killed the next mandagora. He leveled several kills later.

"All right! This is awesome." He looked back at Dezuki, who looked very, very worn out. "Hey, Dez, I think you should get some rest now."

"You don't say..." panted Dezuki.

"Heh. Oh, and by the way..." He pulled out his bow and began killing more mandagoras while he talked. "Ever thought about registering at the Date-NPC?"

"Well, no, I haven't... I don't want to, really."

"Aww, c'mon, ya know that special guy is waitin' out there somewhere, ehh?" He nudged her, and double-winked. "Ya never know, it just might be me!"

"Keep dreaming."

"Count on it, honey," Silver said in a flirty way, as he turned to fight the last group of monsters. "Ack, too many at once... I need a few heals..."

Dezuki whistled and pretended to forget to heal. "Fah-lah-lah-lah-lahhhh..."

"H-Hey! ...Okay, okay, it won't be me! Argh!"

"Teeheehee."

After Dezuki had fun watching Silver run across the fields for a bit, she helped him defeat the group of monsters, and they headed back to town.

"Ohhh, c'mon, Dez, it's a piece of cake, just talk to the NPC already."

Dezuki didn't answer.

"Look at it this way, what can you lose?" He gestured at the Date NPC. "Destiny is calling!"

"...I don't wanna."

"Do too."

"Do not."

"You know deep inside you do!"

"Nuh-uhh."

"Do too!"

"Well goodnight, Silver, I'm off to bed. See ya tomorrow." She logged off with a flash.

"Awww... c'mon, humor me for once," Silver sighed.

 **Journal: Wednesday, November 11th, 2009**

 _Meh, internet out again. Today was pretty fun - I met a new friend on Luna. She talked me into registering at the Date-NPC. I never bothered because I didn't think there was any point - I never wanted to find guys online anyways. But she said the whole dungeon thing was fun, so I thought that it's worth a try. But after I registered, I couldn't believe what happened..._

 **LUNA Online: Wednesday, November 11th, 2009**

"Don't worry, Dez, It'll be fine. Trust me, it's no biggie at all." Melanie was trying to talk Dezuki into registering.

"I just don't know..."

"Hey, if anything goes bad, I'll send you a box full of chocolates. How's that sound?" Melanie had a puppy-dog look in her eyes.

Dezuki thought she was always cutest like this. And it was surprising how effective it was. "So you're willing to bet that it'll go fine, huh?"

"Yup!"

"All right, fine... but first, is Silver online?"

"Huh? Well let's see... nope, he isn't. Did you want him online when you registered? He is kinda funny!"

"No! I don't want him online when I register... I..."

"Hmm?"

"Nothing..." Dezuki walked up to the Registration-NPC and talked to her. It took her a while to choose her likes and dislikes, but it was easy enough. In a few minutes, she was walking back to Melanie.

"See, it wasn't that hard, was it?" Melanie smiled.

"It's not that, Mel, I just-" Dezuki suddenly spun around.

"What? Already a hit? Sheesh, aren't you a hottie, mmmm?" Melanie grinned.

"Oh... uhm, hi..." Dezuki said to a tall and fierce-looking Rune Knight.

"Well hello, Dez." The Rune Knight double-winked at her.

Dezuki stared, star-struck. "Wait a second..."

"I'm proud of ya. Took you a while to gather the courage to register, didn't it?" He grinned. "Knew you would at some point, though - and I was right there waitin' for ya. I knew we had a lot in common."

"Silver!" Dezuki took a step back, before deciding to hit him. -thunk-

"Hey, hey now... And by the way, they call me Storm on this char, but you can still call me Silver if you wish."

Dezuki glared. "Stalker."

Melanie looked at Dezuki. "Oh, come on, Dez, you two have known each other for awhile. I think it's perfect!" Melanie leaned in closer and whispered. "Besides, he is cute, you know... I'd date him if I could." She stood up straight again and grinned. "Go ahead! Be adventurous!"

"Yeah, you said you wanted to level today anyway, Dezzie." Silver smiled.

"Hey, no new nicknames now... just because a computer says we're compatible!" Dezuki frowned.

"Oh c'mon, it's cute - ow! Okay, okay... sheesh." He laughed.

"Oh!" Dezuki exclaimed. "Time for my Chem class. I'll talk to you guys later - I've got to go." She logged off with a flash.

"Aww! And I thought I was about to witness the cutest date... " Melanie sighed. "Oh well, you two will go on one when she gets back, right, Silver? ...Sliver? Hey! Silver!"

Silver didn't answer.

"...SILVER!" -Thwack-

"Ehh? Oh, hey, Mel. Yeah... We'll go on a date when she gets back."

"What's up with you going AFK on me like that? Sheesh, man, pull it together - at least say something..." Melanie continued to mutter.

"Mmm. Sorry. I just noticed something interesting."

"Interesting?" Melanie snapped out of her muttering.

"Ehh? Oh, haha, nothing." He smiled.

"...Riiiiight."

 **LUNA Online: Thursday, November 12th, 2009**

"All right, ya ready, Dezzie?" Silver asked. He was back on his scout.

"Uhm, uhm, uhm..."

"Great! Cause here we go!" Silver activated the date-dungeon, and the two disappeared in a flash of light.

"Apparently you aren't used to teleporting."

Dezuki sat down on an overly large rock, catching her breath.

"Heh." Silver turned around and looked around a bit. "Oh...no..."

"What?" Dezuki didn't like the 'disaster is near' tone in his voice.

"Ehm... well uhm..."

"...What?"

"Oops."

"Whaaaaaat?" Now Dezuki was really worried.

"It looks like I accidentally teleported us to the wrong dungeon. We're one tier higher than we should be. Hehe..." Silver grinned. "Must be because I'm used to my Rune Knight."

"Argh - does that mean we're gunna die? Some date this is..."

"Ohohoho... don't give up hope that easy, Dezzie-darling. Nobody dies with Silver. C'mon, we'll be fine." He started to walk further into the dungeon.

"H-hey! Wait for me!" cried Dezuki, getting up franticly. "And I said no nicknames!"

"All right, Dezzie," Silver laughed as he pulled out his daggers. Dezuki glared at him - but he was too busy fending off the first attack to notice. His voice sounded much more serious under the strain. "We've gotta clear this dungeon in 15 minutes or we're out of time! Let's show these mobs who's boss! Eheh..." He turned around, double-winked at Dezuki, and turned towards the first monster, raising his daggers gracefully. "Now... m'dear monsters, shall we dance?" He smirked, and began his frenzy.

An epic battle ensued. As a scout, Silver was not a great damage dealer, but the monsters in the dungeon were not quick or smart enough for his tricks. Even when they managed to land a hit, Dezuki was there to either block it with magic or heal him back up. Dezuki actually began to have fun - it was a new challenge, and she loved new challenges. She watched how graceful the scout was, jumping around from wall to wall, switching from dagger to bow and back to daggers so smoothly. A talented hybrid, she thought, as he twirled around and jumped back from the monster he was fighting... Unfortunately, while she was too busy admiring him...

-THWAACK-

Dezuki felt like the sky fell down on top of her. All she could see was the ground, and all she could hear was a lot of clashing. Someone in the background was shouting her name. More clashing... and more... what happened? Dungeons don't have skies... and hey, that rock is shaped like a cat... how cute...

A few moments later, she woke to Sliver splashing water in her face. "Hey now, get a grip, come out of it..."

"Kitty... kitty... kitty..."

"Dez. Wake up. You're not in kitty-heaven, sorry, hun. C'mon now, wake up, we're nearly there." He splashed the last of his water canteen at her.

"Wha... Whaaaa!"

"Finally. Here, drink this." Silver handed her a health potion. "You took quite a hit there. Sorry, I couldn't block that one completely. I ended up being thrown against you... Lucky it was me and not the boulder, ehh?"

Dezuki looked up at Silver and noticed how damaged his armor was, and he had several large cuts and bruises. She gasped. "Oh no! I'm so sorry..."

"Hey, hey, it's okay, as long as you're all right."

"But..."

"No really, it's okay. Besides, we're almost there, let's go."

"...How did you beat that thing anyways..." Dezuki was still looking at all of the damage on his armor and thought about how tough the monsters looked.

"Huh?" Silver didn't think much of it.

"You always win..."

"Heh. It's my nature."

The rest of the dungeon was pretty easy. Dezuki stayed on her toes the rest of the time. She felt horrible for letting such an accident happen, but there was no helping it. It wasn't long before they made it to the end within the time limit and found a treasure chest.

"Hmm. Wonder what's inside." Silver tapped the top of the chest. It began to sparkle as the lid lifted off, revealing several items inside.

"Ooooh, sparkly!" Dezuki hugged the box. "Mmmm..."

Silver laughed. "Hey, let's see what's inside... Hmm, a nice pair of daggers... and... wow, a purple dress - it'll go well with your gloves, Dezzie.

"Wow! It's so pretty."

"And... errr... a hairband?

"Oh my! Kitty-ears! I always wanted a pair of these..." Dezuki put them on.

"Heh. Well let's get out of the dungeon."

"Where are we going?" Dezuki said, tilting her head, partially confused.

Silver smiled. "You'll see."

 **LUNA Online: Thursday, November 12th, 2009**

The sun was setting in the sky, and rays of sunlight were breaking through the clouds, sweeping over the meadows below the little hilly outlook that Silver had picked to hang out at. The two sat underneath a tree as they watched the sunset paint the sky with reds, oranges, pinks, and purples. A gentle breeze created waves in the meadow grass below.

"Aww, it's so pretty..." Dezuki said as she admired the scenery. "It looks like something that would be on a desktop wallpaper..."

"Heh, indeed it does." Silver started climbing up the tree, glad to finally have a chance to relax. "So, how was this for a date?"

"Not bad I guess," Dezuki said casually.

"Ehh? Not bad? What's the best date you've been on?" He turned to look at her.

"Best date? ...I've never been on one..." Dezuki blushed and looked back at the sky.

Silver nearly fell out of the tree from laughing. "Oh c'mon, someone like you must have been on at least a dozen dates?"

"Nope."

Silver was genuinely surprised. "Really? Why not?"

"I just-" Dezuki sighed. "You know, I'm really anti-social... I don't like talking to anyone. It makes me blush... and get all nervous... I can barely talk in front of people! Dates are just... impossible!" Dezuki finished off with a very frustrated tone.

"Aww, you don't need to be frustrated at all, hun. I know what it's like. Sometimes, you just have to step out of your comfort zone - that little security bubble - and just go for it. Worst case scenario isn't that bad - trust me, everyone has that problem. It's nothing that should stop you from dating."

"Well..."

"Hey, that's all there is to it. Just take a breath and totally go for it. I think about it this way... 'There is no security on this earth, there is only opportunity.' In other words, you shouldn't just hide away to stop embarrassment - you'll never really be safe and secure. Instead, just go for it - it's an opportunity."

"...I guess that makes sense."

"Of course it does." Silver slid down from the tree and sat next to Dezuki. "Next time a guy asks you out, or you see a guy you want to ask out, go for it, all right?"

"Ha... well, all right, maybe I'll try..."

"Cheer up, you'll be fine. Who knows, maybe it could be even more fun than this."

"Heh..." Dezuki was very unenthusiastic.

Silver flicked the kitty-ears on Dezuki's hairband. "No, really. Cheer up now, you'll be fine."

"Yeah, you're right..." Dezuki swatted Silver's hand away. "Okay, okay, now cut that out!"

"Hehe, Dezzie is getting feisty now, isn't she?"

"Grrrr..."

 **IRL, Community College Campus: Friday, November 13th, 2009**

A usual day on campus, Dezuki had just gotten out of class and was doing some of her weekend's homework at a table. She had just finished her calculus homework. _Phew, no more Calculus to worry about for this weekend._ A guy walked up to her table.

"Hey, uhmm... I'm James, I'm in the same calculus class as you... I was wondering if you had today's assignments? I kinda missed class today."

"O-oh." _Oh my, oh my, oh my... why would someone ask me... uhmm... uhmm... what should I say... uhmmm..._ Dezuki could feel herself blushing. _...Uhhmm... Why didn't he ask someone else, I don't want to talk. I'll stutter and make a fool out of myself... Great..._ Suddenly she remembered something from last night: _"'There is no security on this earth, there is only opportunity.' In other words, you shouldn't just hide away to stop embarrassment - you'll never really be safe and secure. Instead, just go for it - it's an opportunity."_

Dezuki gathered up her courage, took a deep breath... "Uhmmm... Calculus... uhmm... Y-yeah, sure, I have the assignments written down..." Dezuki dug through her bag and handed him a paper.

"Thanks." James started to write down the assignments on his spiral. Dezuki was caught up in the moment, staring at James... _He's actually... kinda cute..._ "All right, here's the paper back... Ehh, hey?"

"Oh! Y-yeah, n-no problem." Dezuki started packing up her bag, looking down, blushing heavily. _Well, that didn't go too bad... I actually talked to someone on campus today... just wait 'till I tell Silver..._

"Hey, by the way," James started.

Dezuki jumped from her chair, startled. "Oh! I thought you left. Sorry."

James laughed. "Well, I heard there's a new café open, Northtown Coffee House I think? Anyways, I was wondering if you'd like to come check it out with me. I noticed you always have coffee in class... even though the instructor doesn't like drinks in class." James grinned.

"Oh... uhmm... hehe yeah..." She smiled back bashfully.

"It's okay, a lot of people do it anyways. I'm no drink-police or anything... Anyways, how about it?"

"Well, uhmm..." Dezuki remembered what Silver had said the other day: _"Next time a guy asks you out, or you see a guy you want to ask out, go for it, all right?"_ _All right, why not I guess._ "Yeah - sure."

"Okay, awesome. Don't worry, I heard it's great." James smiled.

 **IRL, Northtown Coffee House: Friday, November 13th, 2009**

For being so new, the Northtown Coffee House was a hit. Having only been open for a week, the place was a new fave for hanging out and the casual cup of coffee. They featured an array of different drinks and snacks, and of course a big favorite, gelato. The homey brick building was furnished with lots of recliners and comfy chairs, lounges, a downstairs basement with a fireplace, a large flat-screen TV, board games, wireless internet... It was no wonder the place was an instant success.

The bells on the door chimed to greet the two newest customers of the bustling cafe. Dezuki was instantly immersed in the jolly atmosphere of local city folk - and her favorite smell in the world: deep, rich coffee.

A cheerful girl at the counter smiled as they walked in. "What can I get started for you two?"

James looked down at Dezuki. "I'm buying." He smiled kindly, gesturing for her to order.

Dezuki began to blush as she fumbled with her purse. "It's okay, I can pay..."

"Ah-ah-ah," James interrupted. "My treat, go ahead. Don't be shy."

The couple bought their drinks, as well as a small cup of gelato for Dezuki. They settled down at a small table downstairs, away from the noisier groups in the café.

"Heh, how's the gelato?"

"Dee-li-cious. Thank you again, James." She smiled as she offered the cup. "Wanna try some?"

"Sure?"

"Of course!"

"Heh, all right then," said James as he took a spoonful, and raised his eyebrows. "That's actually pretty good."

Dezuki smiled a little. "Of course it is, silly, it's chocolate!"

James laughed. He was surprised how much Dezuki had come out of her shell.

"So, why did you invite me anyways?" Dezuki suddenly asked.

"Oh, I dunno. I just wanted to take someone along and check out this new café. It's pretty nice, don't you think?"

"Yeah, I do like it. It's very homey. I think I might start studying here instead of on campus for a change."

James smiled. "Glad you like it." He watched Dezuki enjoy her chocolate gelato for a while, as he sipped his hazelnut mocha. "So, what do you do on your spare time?"

Dezuki stopped licking her spoon. "Oh? Well, not much I suppose. Just writing and guitar... and I help out at the radio station sometimes."

James laughed. "Ah, so that was you on the radio! Thought your voice was familiar."

Dezuki blushed some more. "I don't like my voice..."

"I think it's cute."

"It is not!"

"Oh really? Beauty is in the eye of the beholder!" James grinned.

Dezuki continued eating her gelato. "Hmmph! I still think it's terrible."

"Doesn't change what I think, does it?"

Dezuki sighed. "I guess not... why do you always win?"

"It's my nature."

"Hey..."

"What?"

"Oh... nothing."

The two chatted about classes, about previous instructors and classes they had, things that annoyed them, computers and how they never seemed to work right, and so much more. It didn't seem long before it was already getting dark outside.

They thanked the girl at the register and both received punch cards and a coupon. "Thanks for visiting. Come back soon!"

"Yup, we're planning on it." James waved goodbye as he walked out the door, and held it for Dezuki.

"Aww, they're such a cute couple," one of the baristas said as Dezuki was walking out the door. She blushed heavily from their comment. James just smiled.

"Brrrr, it got cold fast!" Dezuki crossed her arms in an attempt to keep warm.

"Here, take this." James shrugged off his trench coat and helped Dezuki into it.

"Oh! Are you sure?"

"Yup. I'm not cold anyways."

"If you're sure... Thanks." The trench coat was surprisingly very warm, although it was much too big on Dezuki. "Mmm... I look like I'm playing dress up."

James laughed. "You look fine. Besides, it's warm, isn't it?"

"Yes, very much so." Dezuki giggled.

The two walked back quietly. Dezuki felt a little awkward from the silence, but didn't know what to say. Inside, though, she felt so proud. She had lived through her first date - and enjoyed it! She let her thoughts wonder aimlessly, thinking about James...

Northtown Café was a side street café, and the closest parking that James had been able to get was two blocks over. The only thing that James could complain of about the new café, was its proximity to the county jail. His memories from last year's break-out were still vivid in his mind. But he knew there was no need to fear things like that now. He shook the memories away and looked back up.

"Oh, are you cold now?" Dezuki started sliding off the trench coat.

"No, no, I'm fine, don't you worry. I was just thinking."

"Of what?"

"Oh... heh, nothing really. How about you?"

Dezuki felt her face blush once again. _I've got to stop doing that._ "Nothing..."

James smiled.

 **IRL, Downtown: Friday, November 13th, 2009**

Dezuki and James were walking back to James's car when they noticed a lot of commotion in the parking lot. Dezuki noticed a ringing alarm going off somewhere in the distance. James spotted the escapee almost instantly.

Dezuki gasped. "Is he..."

"Yes, a prison inmate. Somehow broke out. He's not going to make it far though, they're right after him. Don't worry."

Dezuki noticed the police chasing after the man. "They're coming towards us, James..."

"It's all right, I'll stop him. He isn't getting past me." He took a fighter stance, muttered something, and when the prisoner was closer, James sprang at him.

"James! No! Oh no... be careful!" Dezuki was really worried about James. But he seemed so experienced...

James took a swing at the prisoner, but the prisoner dodged the strike...

Dezuki felt a sudden passion burning within her. She didn't want James hurt. It couldn't happen. She ran towards him, with no idea how to help - only determination.

With a smirk, the prisoner threw a punch at James, Dezuki could see it was going to hit full-on. "Noooooooo!" Without thinking of anything but James's safety, she threw herself between the punch and James...

Next thing she knew, someone was calling her name... there was a lot of pain... did she fall? And then everything went black.

 **IRL, Local Hospital: Friday, November 13th, 2009**

Dezuki laid quietly in a hospital bed while James watched over her, a worried look in his face. Several hours had already passed since the incident. He had already contacted her parents using the address book in her purse. _I hate digging through purses,_ he thought as he blushed. But it was all taken care of now, and he just hoped she would be okay...

 _Beeping. What's that beeping?... oh, no..._ Dezuki slowly opened her eyes and waited for her vision to focus... _Oh no... It IS a hospital..._ "Ohhh..." Her shoulder felt sore, she tried to reach up, but a hand stopped her.

"Just relax, everything will be all right. How are you feeling?" James was sitting next to her.

"Oh! James! What happened? All I remember is you fighting and... and... and you were about to be hit so I-"

"Hey, calm down, I said. They caught the guy, he's back in prison. We got you to a hospital as soon as we could, they said it was nothing serious. They didn't tell me the details, but you did break your arm on the way down."

"Oh..."

"It's all right. I already called your parents, they are on their way. They kind of freaked, even though I told them it was nothing serious..."

"Yeah... that's my parents, all right..."

"What was that?" Dezuki's mother walked into the room.

"Ohh. Uhm, nothing." Dezuki looked back at James. "You know, you don't have to stay here... I'm sure you have homework to do too."

"Ehh, you're right, I better head off then." He stood up to leave. "I'll drop by tomorrow to see how you're doing, okay?" He grabbed his bag, and walked out of the door, but not before turning back and winking - twice.

"Sure... and... Hey... that was..." But James was already out the door.

 **IRL, Local Hospital: Saturday, November 14th, 2009**

Dezuki was still in bed, reading a manga, holding it up with her good arm. As it turned out, she had also broken her ankle, and managed to do something to her hip - it hurt a lot to walk.

"Hey, hey, hey!" James walked into the room.

"James!" She put the manga down and smiled. "How are things going for you?"

"Fine. It's been raining outside. What about you?"

"Just fine. Nothing to do, though," she said as she looked around.

"Yeah, figured."

"Thanks for taking me on the date yesterday though. I hope you don't still feel bad about what happened..."

"Well, I can't help that... You shouldn't have gotten hurt... I should have kept that from happening..."

"Don't worry about it, it isn't much anyways. Can we go on another date again soon?"

"Heh. Well if you insist..."

Dezuki giggled. "Of course! It was fun."

James reached into his bag. "Well, I thought that since you couldn't get out of bed right now, I could bring a date to you..." He pulled out a pair of laptops, and handed one to her.

"Huh?"

James double-winked again.

"No way! You... you are Silver, aren't you?" Dezuki half-shouted.

"Shhh, you're going to alarm the nurses, heh. Yeah, it's me, Silver."

She tried to get up to hug him. James laughed and leaned over her... they hugged tightly, although Dezuki could only use one arm. "I should have known..."

"I've noticed for quite a while now. You play Luna on campus like, every day."

"Well, yeah, but..."

"Don't worry, I do too. I always noticed you, in real life, leaving your table right when you, in game, logged off. I peeked at your screen just to make sure though." James grinned.

"Ahh! Knew you were..." Dezuki just laughed and hugged him again. "Thank you, James... for everything..."

"For what?"

"For... for your advice... and... uhmm..."

"Heh, don't worry about any of it. It's my pleasure, hun... my pleasure." They both smiled.

Suddenly, Dezuki laughed.

"What is it?" James said, puzzled.

"I just realized, for once, I got to save you, instead of you saving me... sort of." She grinned.

"Well, if you count a kamikaze attack as saving, I guess so. Next time let me handle it though, okay?"

"You were going to get hit!" Dezuki objected.

"Mehh... It won't happen again."

"Don't worry - I'm always here for you if it does."

"And I'll always be here for you."

Dezuki felt so happy - James was so wonderful. Never again would she have to be so alone! And then she realized he was leaning in closer. Her heart skipped a beat, but she closed her eyes and leaned towards him. They kissed softly.

"I love you..." James said as got back up.

"I... I love you too!" Dezuki couldn't stop smiling. And blushing.

James glanced back at the laptops for a second, and grinned. "Well, Dez, up for another dungeon date?"

Dezuki grinned back. "Sure!"


	41. The Adventures of the OT Domo

The Adventures of the OT Domo

 **Chapter 1**

Forced to stay awake, Shassy began to see shapes and apparitions in front of her eyes. "Are these real," she pondered, "Or am I just having a hallucination from lack of sleep?"

She laughingly reached out to touch one of the many shapes floating past her. "These things are not real," she thought, as her hand brushed , yes brushed, against the shape she thought was only in her mind's eye.

"But that's impossible!" she said. "There is no way that these things I see are real!" But there she was holding a Baby Domo in her hands. Thinking quickly, she shoved the Domo into her pocket, and then she briskly walked back to her desk. Looking into her pocket, she saw the tiny Domo looking back at her... it smiled.

"I think I'll name it Kawcakes," Shassy said to herself, smiling.

After Shassy got little Kaw-Kaw comfortable in her pocket, she left her desk in search of sustenance. She had a little spot she went to almost daily for lunch, but today was different. Today she was not just feeding herself. She was feeding her new pocket friend, Kaw-Kaw.

"Ok, lil one. Time to come out and have some food," she said to her Pocket-Domo. But Kaw just stared back at her with big scared eyes. "What's wrong there, Kaw-Kaw?" she asked. "Aren't you hungry for some nibbles?"

When Shassy said 'nibbles', Kaw-Kaw's eyes grew large, (almost anime large), but he still wouldn't come out of her pocket. "He must be shy," Shassy thought, and reached into her pocket to grab lil Kaw-Kaw out...

Boom!

"Holy Smokes!" Shassy said. "What just happened?" As she looked down to see if Kaw-Kaw was ok, she was horrified to see her pocket all darkened and black with ash and soot. "Oh no!" she thought, "My lil Kawcakes just exploded!"

But everything was ok. As she looked into her slightly burned pocket, she saw lil Kaw-Kaw sitting there, eyes large, but otherwise ok.

"Did you make that big boom, Kaw-Kaw?" she asked.

Kaw-Kaw just giggled, as if to say, 'Yes, I did!'

Shassy knew then that she had to be careful with her Domo. If she frightened him, he would explode. Fortunately lil Kaw was unharmed by his own blast. It seems he had many secrets that Shassy would soon find out.

After Kaw-Kaw's explosion, Shassy thought, "What would people say if Kaw-Kaw decided to explode in front of them?" But she already knew what they would say, and it scared her.

As Shassy quickly started to head back to her office, she began wondering what she was gonna do to keep her coworkers from finding out about Kaw. She knew that one wrong move would cause Kaw to get scared, and he might decide to blow up again.

She was so busy trying to figure out a plan, that she never saw the person that came up behind her.

Bam!

"What the..." Shassy thought, as she turned to see who hit her. As she spun around she saw a person behind her, who looked as if they had survived a bombing.

"You stole him from me!" the person said, "You stole him and thought I didn't know!" Even though her eyes were blurry from the blow, Shassy knew exactly who it was.

It was Asmeret... Kaw's former owner.

Asmeret...

Shassy knew her well. She was once a highly respected citizen of this fine little town named 'OT'. But that was all before... before she changed.

Asmeret wasn't always this twisted and burned creature. No, she was once a high ranking official in the local government. A powerful woman, she helped out the needy, and made the little town of 'OT' a special place,.

But then she started to fade away from the public eye. People began to see less and less of her. Soon, the only word of her that anyone heard was from her trusted confidant, Shinichi. (But that is another story for another time.)

Finally, nobody ever saw Asmeret. She had effectively disappeared, and all the good works she did began to fade away... and it began the 'bad times'.

Asmeret turned towards Shassy, and with a gleam in her eye said, "So how is my little Domo?"

Shassy looked down to her pocket. Lil Kaw-Kaw's eyes were the size of dinner plates, and he was scared... suddenly Shassy realized what was going on.

"He isn't your Domo anymore, Asm!" Shassy yelled. "He came to me with his own free will! You will never have him again!"

Asmeret laughed long and hard. "Do you really think you can handle him? He was my pocket Domo long before you even came to this town!" She smirked. "I'll bet you don't even know how to use him!"

Fire burned within Shassy. She didn't know where it came from until she looked down at her pocket. It was glowing! And little Kaw was too! "Your time is over Asm," Shassy laughed. "Kaw came to me! I didn't take him from you!"

Boom!

The shock wave was massive. Windows shook, trees bent, and rain fell. Shassy was thrown back by the blast. As she sat up and looked around, she saw that she was alone. All alone that is , except for a fuzzy little Domo happily sleeping in her pocket. She knew that it was all over, and Kaw-Kaw was hers.

"I love you Kawcakes! Thank you for helping me defeat Asm!"

The end... or is it?

 **Chapter 2 - Exploration**

After the big battle, both Shassy and Kaw-Kaw were exhausted. And with good reason too. I mean, who wouldn't be tired after exploding a few times and getting knocked on the head... but they needed to get back home before they could rest.

As Shassy and Kawcakes traveled home, they observed everyone in town during their daily routine. It seems that the town of OT had a lot going on behind the scenes.

When they approached Eternal_Moon's Siggy Shop, they noticed how full the store was and how busy Eternal was, happily making siggys for the townsfolk. Even though the sign on the door said no new customers, Shassy could see that there were many out-of-towners lined up hoping for a chance to obtain one. And since Eternal was so nice, she always took them in anyway.

Working her way through the crowd, Shassy noticed how lonely and quiet Savara's Fighter Shop was in comparison to Eternal's busy shop. It looks like fighters were not very popular these days. Still, Shassy knew that it was far to early to say if Sava's business was going to make it or not.

"So many shops in town!" Shassy murmured to herself. "One of these days I'll have to take a shopping trip here!"

Moving along, Shassy eventually came to the Cookie Store, ran by none other than the three best cookie makers in town, Cheng, Damio, and Hoshi. "Hi, guys!" Shassy yelled as she watched Dami and Hoshi throwing cookies into the air and Cheng catching them on a tray.

Leon's Towel Store was next, and wow, did he know how to advertise! Huge pictures of Leon in all his towels littered the storefront, and the place was packed too! Leon saw Shassy walking by and waved at her, and then quickly grabbed his towel as it started to slip off of him. "Hi, Shassy!" Leon exclaimed, "Beautiful day for wearing a towel!"

"It sure is, Leo," Shassy smiled, as she merrily started skipping along.

Suddenly she heard a loud snore. It was lil Kaw-Kaw. "Poor little guy must be really tired to be sleeping through all this," Shassy thought. "I'll be sure to let him sleep in late."

Suddenly, Shassy's heart dropped to the ground. There he was. Dal the Caricaturist.

Shassy loved Dal with al her heart, she knew one day they would be happily married. "Hi, Dal!" Shassy said lovingly. "What a beautiful day it is today!"

Dal smiled. "I agree Shassy, here, look at this picture I drew of you!"

Shassy screamed and grabbed the pic. Dal was one of the best freehand artists in town, and she was proud to now own one of his drawings.

"Oh thank you, Dal, I'll hang it on the wall when I get home!" As Shassy skipped past Dal, she saw that she was almost home. Soon she and Kaw-Kaw could get some much needed rest.

But before she could finish the thought, she was knocked back by a huge wind. As she looked up to see what happened, she saw a figure standing in the distance... It was Kage!

 **Chapter 3 - Retro Cookie**

Kage was laughing...

"Why is Kage laughing?" Shassy thought, slowly picking herself off of the ground. "He just knocked me down, and now he is laughing at me?"

Standing firmly in front of her, Kage looked down at Shassy and continued laughing at her. He didn't seem concerned about her at all.

"What's the deal man?" Shassy asked. "I'm tired, and I want to go home... Why did you blow me down, I thought we were friends?"

Kage stopped laughing and looked sternly at Shassy. "You should know, Shas," Kage said. "You are the one holding the Domo in your pocket."

Remembering little Kaw-Kaw, Shassy looked down at her pocket to see if he was ok. His eyes were wide with fear, and he was shaking in the pocket... Something about Kage had the little guy scared out of his head.

"I don't know how you know about Kaw!" Shassy raged. "And I don't know why you knocked me down, but there had better be some answers soon, or we are gonna have a problem, understand!?"

Kage smiled thinly. "There is quite a bit going on you don't know about, my friend. Firstly, your little Kaw-Kaw doesn't belong to you... he never did."

"What's this all about, Kage?" Shassy said cautiously. "Please tell me." As Kage moved towards Shassy, she felt Kaw shiver in her pocket.

"Little Kaw-Kaw, as you call him, is mine, Shas. I was next in line after Asmeret. And since you so expertly disposed of her, the Domo now belongs to me!"

Kage turned to Shassy showing her his pocket. It had small writing that was in a language she couldn't read, and it seemed to have a glow to it.

"The Family Line of the Retros will always be the keepers of the Domo!" Kage raged. "This little one was lucky enough to escape his master, Asmeret. And somehow you were able to steal him! But rest assured, today he will be mine!"

Shassy was filled with anger. "How dare you accuse me of taking him! He came to me of his own will, and I won't give him to you without a fight!"

Kage smiled again. "I expected no less, m'lady," he said, and threw out his hands in front of him.

Wind!

Incredible wind came from Kage! It seemed that he had a hurricane in his hands, and he was throwing it at Shassy! It was too much for her, and she started to fall back... but she didn't drop!

Looking down, Shassy saw Kaw-Kaw. He was smiling at her. and he seemed to be vibrating! All Shassy felt was air flowing across her. As she looked down, she was amazed to see that she was in the air, with a cloud swirling around her. Suddenly, Shassy felt the power within her again! It was building, and building, until...

Boom!

If you had been looking at the blast, you would have sworn that an atomic bomb had been dropped in downtown OT. Newspapers were flying around, and all the storefronts had lost their windows. Soon there were townsfolk all around asking Shassy if she was ok.

"I... I think so," she said, unsteadily. She looked around her... Kage was nowhere to be found. "Perhaps the blast destroyed him?" she wondered, as she was helped up off the ground. Looking down, she saw that Kaw-Kaw was sound asleep again.

"That's not a bad idea, little Kaw," Shassy said, as she started walking up the steps to her home. "I think I could sleep for a week after today!"

As she was walking inside, Shassy didn't notice the figure standing in the shadows across the street. The person slowly moved out from the alley they were in, and began to walk down the street. It was a woman. She was tall, but slim, and she had a cookie logo on the back of her outfit. Turning the corner, she looked back at Shassy's home.

"You may have beaten Kage Ryu, Shassy, but he is nothing compared to me! Our time will come, soon!" As she walked around the corner, her cape moved slightly, revealing a name tag.

It said, 'Hello, my name is: Silent Two.'

 **Chapter 4 - Origins**

Completely exhausted, Shassy walked up her steps into her home, and went straight to the bedroom. Looking down at Kaw-Kaw, she saw that he was out like a light. "I think I'll join you, lil Kaw," Shassy said. And before you know it, she was sound asleep.

SilentTwo watched Shassy as she entered her home. She waited until Shassy was completely inside before she turned and began briskly walking down the street. As she walked, she occasionally looked behind her to see if she was followed. Seeing that she was alone, she stood next to the tall tree at the end of town and knocked on it three times. Instantly, a door opened on the side of the tree. As she entered, the door slammed behind her.

Once inside the tree, SilentTwo began walking down a long winding staircase. At the bottom, it opened up into a wide stone auditorium filled with burning torches.

"Silly girl, she doesn't know what she has yet," SilentTwo said, muttering to herself. "If she even had half an idea..." Her words were cut off by a booming voice.

"But she doesn't have an idea yet, does she, sister?"

Standing up at the end of the auditorium, a man dressed exactly like SilentTwo began walking towards her. He was tall, but slim, and he had a cookie logo on the back of his outfit. As he walked towards her, his cape moved slightly, revealing a name tag.

It said, 'Hello, my name is: SilentOne.'

"And we don't want her figuring out anything just yet, do we, sister?" the tall man said to her as they stood in front of each other. "She doesn't yet know what power she has in her pocket, and we mustn't reveal it to her." He had fire in his eyes. "At least not yet!"

"I say we destroy her now and take what is ours!" SilentTwo screamed. "You saw what she did to Asmeret... and Kage!"

Looking over his shoulder as he walked away, SilentOne said, "And that is exactly why we have done nothing so far!" He paused at a large silver table. "If she can destroy Asmeret and Kage, and she doesn't even know how to control it, think of what she could do to us!"

Finding a book on the table, SilentOne turned back towards his sister. "This, my sister, is what we need."

SilentTwo looked at it. "What is it?" she laughed. "It looks old and dirty."

Now it was SilentOne's turn to laugh. "My dear sister, this book contains all of the teachings of our people. More importantly, it has all the details for catching and controlling a Domo!"

Silence filled the room... SilentTwo shifted uneasily on her feet.

"So you see, dear sister, this Shassy is more important to us than originally thought." He tossed the book down on the table. "She is now in control of the Domo, and also its powers!" His eyes blazed. "Fortunately for us, she doesn't know how to control it!"

SilentTwo looked angrily at her brother. "So what do we do now? We can't just let her have it!" She turned away from her brother in disgust, knocking down several chairs in her rage. "I say we just take it now, while she is asleep!"

"Silence!" SilentOne raged, "You saw what happened to Asm and Kage, and you still wish to take it by force?" He walked over to pick up the chairs. "Shassy accidentally used the Domo, she doesn't even know how she did it! If she could do that much damage being unaware, then we must not try to stop her. At least not yet!"

Looking deflated, SilentTwo asked. "So, what should we do then, my brother?"

SilentOne smiled viciously. "Easy, my sister, we use deception. We befriend her, get close to her, find out everything we can. Then, then my sister, we attack."

Clapping her hands together with glee, SilentTwo asked, "So, what's the plan then?"

"The plan? Quite simple really." SilentOne smirked. "Contact our minions at the Cookie Shop. Tell them to send Shassy a nice basket of cookies."

As she turned away, SilentTwo laughed with her brother, then she called the Cookie Shop.

"OT Cookie Shop, Cheng speaking!"

"Cheng, it is SilentTwo, get Damio and Hoshi, and send a basket to Shassy's House. My brother has a job for you!"

 **Chapter 5 - Division**

Sunlight...

Blinking, Shassy sat up in her bed and looked around. As she looked towards her window, she saw sunlight pouring into her room. "What a beautiful day!" she murmured, as she slowly pulled herself to the edge of her bed, and then jumped to the floor.

A contented snore came from the corner. Looking where she hung her pants the night before, she saw Kaw-Kaw's little furry feet hanging out of her pants pocket. Walking softly so not to wake him, Shassy worked her way over to the pants and looked down at little Kaw.

He snored once loudly and then snorted himself awake. Looking around, Kaw made little mew-mew noises before his eyes came to rest on Shassy. "Hi, Kaw-Kaw," Shassy beamed. "How are you this morning?" Kaw-Kaw just made happy noises and settled into the pocket deeper.

"We need to get our day started, Kaw," Shassy said, grabbing her pants and clothes. As she got dressed, she thought about everything that had happened the day before. The first battle with Asmeret, the second one with Kage. This all started happening to her when she had found the little Domo in her office. There was something special about the little guy. Something that people would do anything to have.

While she was lost in her thoughts, there was a loud knock at her door. "Who is it?" Shassy yelled.

"Cookie delivery from the Cookie Store!" she heard Cheng yell back.

"We have a special delivery for you today!" Hoshi and Damio chimed in.

Hurrying to the door, Shassy opened it to see Cheng, Hoshi, and Damio smiling up at her. "Hi, Miss Shassy!" they all said in unison, holding a huge tray in their hands. "This is for you... all for you."

Shassy looked at the huge tray quizzically. "Who sent me this, guys?" she asked. Shassy was pretty new to town, and didn't know anyone well enough to be sent cookies.

"It is from a secret admirer, Miss," Hoshi said quietly...

"Someone has recently taken a interest in you," Damio said with a plastic smile.

"Uh... Ok guys, thanks!" Shassy said unsteadily. "I'll be sure to enjoy them." As Shassy closed her door and set down the tray, she noticed a small note attached to it. "Maybe it is from my secret admirer!" she thought, pulling the card free and opening it up.

"Greeting Shassy! I hope this gift finds you in good health and spirits! Please accept this gift of cookies. I'm sure you will enjoy them. Once you have had your fill, I would be honored if you would meet with me so I can reveal myself to you, and discuss all the events that have happened lately... and much more!"

The card was written beautifully, but it was not signed. Turning it over, Shassy saw an address written in small print. It was a lot on the other side of town. The area used to be very nice, but was pretty run down these days.

"Hmmm," Shassy mumbled. "It seems pretty suspicious that I receive a mystery gift the day after finding lil Kaw, but my curiosity is killing me, so let's find out what is really going on." Looking down at her pocket, it seemed that Kaw-Kaw agreed with her, so off they went.

Munching on one of the cookies, Shassy slowly began her trip to her meeting with her mystery admirer. Everywhere around her people were doing repairs to their shops from the previous day's battles. She couldn't help but feel a little bad about it even though she'd had no control over the day's events. She saw Savara and Leon helping each other put their windows back in. And Eternal was out front sweeping up debris from all the work being done.

"Hi, guys!" Shassy waved. "All the work looks good!" The trio waved back and continued working. Shassy also saw Dal outside working on his storefront. "Hiii, Dallll!" Shassy beamed.

"Hi, Shassy! Where you going?" Dal asked. "I'm actually meeting a mystery person, Dal!" Shassy giggled. "I won't know who it is until I get there!"

"OH...I" Dal's face had changed. No longer was he smiling. In fact, he looked very worried. "Promise me you will be careful, Shassy," Dal warned. "Promise me!"

He looked so concerned that Shassy instantly hugged him. "I will be, Dal. Don't worry about me." As she walked on, Shassy noticed that Dal had stopped working. So had Leon, Savara, and Eternal. They were all watching her and whispering to themselves.

"This is turning out to be a strange day," Shassy thought. "I wonder how strange it is going to get."

Looking up, Shassy noticed that she was at the address on the card. It seemed to be a empty storefront. Both windows in front were boarded up, and it seemed... deserted.

"Hello, Shassy."

Shassy jumped a foot in the air and spun around. There standing behind her was a tall, but thin man. He was wearing a cape, and had a name tag that said, 'Hello, my name is: SilentOne.'

"So sorry to frighten you like that," the tall man said. "I wanted to be sure you came alone." Smiling, the man moved a little closer to Shassy.

Shassy backed up as the man approached her. Lil Kaw was making some very anxious noises from his pocket. He seemed very unhappy to be there.

While Shassy was trying to gain control of herself, the tall man moved closer to her. "There is no need for fear, m'lady." He grinned. "There is something of importance we need to discuss, but first, did you receive your basket of cookies?"

Relaxing a little, Shassy answered, "I... uh, yes, I did. They are tasty, thanks." As she chewed on the cookie in her hand, she began to feel a little dizzy.

"They are very special cookies, my dear," the man said. "How do you feel?"

Knowing that she had been tricked, Shassy tried to back away. "Wha... what did you do to me?" she mumbled.

"Simple, my dear," the tall man sneered. "I made sure that you wouldn't be able to use that infernal Domo to blow me away!"

As he laughed, a tall thin woman came up behind Shassy. "Hi there, deary," she laughed as she began to tie Shassy up.

As the two tied Shassy up, they made sure to avoid contact with her pocket. They grabbed Shassy, and placed her in a cart. Cheng, Damio, and Hoshi arrived, and they began to wheel the cart inside the abandoned storefront.

Down the street, Dal watched intently. When he saw the group take Shassy away, he ran towards the stores. Eternal, Savara and Leon were waiting for him when he got there.

"The time has come, guys," Dal said in low tones. "They have her now, and I don't know what they are going to do to her!"

"What about the Domo!?" Eternal said with fire in her eyes. "What have they done with it?"

Dal smiled thinly. "The Domo is safe for now. They cannot take it by force. She has to give it up freely."

Savara and Leon nodded in unison. "Then there is still time."

Turning to go inside, Dal looked towards the place her last saw Shassy. He knew that the time for Division had come.

 **Chapter 6 - Choosing Sides**

He felt like someone had smacked him with a sledge hammer. Stars were flying around his head, and he had a ringing in his ears. Every movement was agony...

Kage moaned softly as he pushed himself off of the ground. Working himself into a standing position, he looked around to see where he was. Surprisingly, he saw that he was about a mile outside of town.

"Whoa!" Kage mused. "That was the worst beating I think anyone has ever lived through!" Looking down at the state of his clothing, Kage laughed. "Ha! If she had hit me any harder, I'd be naked!" Grimacing with the pain from his laughter, Kage began his journey back to town. He had to tell the others.

* * *

Dal was pacing back and forth...

Turning to look at the others, Dal spoke forcefully, "We can't just sit here and let them hurt Shas." He paused slightly. "She is too important to me! I mean, us. We have to move now!"

Eternal smiled up at Dal from the window she was keeping post at. "We can't blow our cover just yet, there is too much at stake."

Frustrated, Dal yelled back, "And that's exactly why we need to move in!"

Leon and Savara walked into the room from the cellar. Eyeballing Dal and Eternal, Leon spoke first. "It is time, guys. We set up camp here to keep track of the Domo. Now it seems that fortune may be on our side. Let's strike while the iron is hot!" He grabbed a towel from his backpack and cracked it against the wall. Plaster flew everywhere.

"Stop it, Leon!" Savara said laughingly. "You are going to bring the roof down if you do that a few more times!"

All of them shared an uneasy laugh. Savara spoke again. "We have all the weapons we will need at my shop, friends. Our fate lies at the edge of town."

After a small pause, all of them worked their way outside, towards Savara's shop.

* * *

Shassy felt ill.

She woke up in darkness, tied to a chair. Her first instinct was to scream, but she bit her lips and waited for her eyes to begin to adjust to the low light.

She was in a circular room. It was stone laid, with a wooden door. As she looked down, she was shocked to see that Kaw-Kaw was gone, and her pocket was too!

"They... they cut my pocket off?" Shassy was stunned. "Why did they cut my pocket off?" Her head was still spinning from whatever was in that cookie. Growing angry Shassy spoke aloud. "What do you want from me? And where is little Kaw?!"

-silence-

Shassy's voice echoed in the room. She was alone, and she didn't know where her friend was. Looking frantically around the room, Shassy saw a small table in the corner. Using her feet, Shassy began to shove her chair towards the table, eventually ending up with her back against it. "Well if my captors won't come to me, I'd better come to them!"

Using all her strength, Shassy began to move her tied hands against the tables edge. The friction on the ropes slowly began to work its magic. Soon the ropes on her hands began to split and unravel.

"C'mon c'mon!" she pleaded. Then she paused. Footsteps were coming towards her! As the last bit of the ropes snapped, she heard the footsteps stop outside of the door...

 **Chapter 7 - Humpty Dumpty**

SilentTwo was laughing.

They were back in the main hall that SilentTwo had first accessed by the tree. SilentOne was sitting in a chair at the silver table, a book opened up in front of him. SilentTwo was standing in front of a cage, laughing at Kaw-Kaw.

"Did you enjoy your vacation?" she sneered. "You must show me all the pictures later!" She smacked the cage. Kaw was still in Shassy's pocket, although it had been cut away from her pants. They had it hanging from a chain in the small cage. Little Kaw-Kaw was inside, tucked deep into the pocket.

While SilentTwo was taunting Kaw, SilentOne continued his studies from the book. He would occasionally stop reading and come stand in front of the cage. Every time he would mutter some strange incantation. Every time he would fail and yell in frustration.

"Nothing in the book is working. I have tried every command in it, and there is no effect!" SilentOne slammed the book closed. Glaring, he rose to join his sister. SilentOne spoke in low tones. "The Domo is bonded to our captor. The only way we can assure that the Domo returns to our service is for her to freely give him up." He leaned closer to the cage. "She will resist us, but I have a plan that guarantees success."

The twins shared a laugh together, as Kaw burrowed deeper into his pocket.

* * *

Eternal was smiling at Dal again.

Dal looked up from the rack of armor he was in front of. The group had made their way to Savara's shop, and were busy getting geared up. Leon had made a robe out of towels, and was busy loading up on MP pots. Savara had brought a large two-handed axe from the storeroom. Eternal had a Holyove in her hand, and was looking through the jewelry for some statted earrings.

"What is it, Eternal?" Dal whispered. "You had that goofy smile earlier, too!"

Eternal set her weapon down and faced Dal. "Your affection for Shassy is gong to hinder our mission. We can't have your head in the clouds."

Dal's face reddened. He whispered furiously. "My head is not in the clouds! I'm well aware of what we need to do!" He looked over at Savara and Leon. Leon was busy cracking his towel against the mannequins, knocking them down. Savara was busy picking them up and yelling at Leon to stop. Dal calmed himself and spoke softly to Eternal. "We have been keeping track of the Domo for a long time. We were making progress, and then Shassy moved into town." He paused and looked at Eternal with a grin. "I guess my priorities shifted a little."

Eternal still had the grin on her face. "You don't think I know that, silly?" She stood up and walked over to Dal and put her hand on his shoulder. "It's not hard to see, Dal. She has made an impact on you." She paused. "I'm sure she is ok."

Savara looked over at them and said, "Shassy is fine, but if Leon doesn't stop cracking his towel, HE is going to have a bad day!"

Leon stopped and walked over to the group, grinning. "I need to make sure my skills are sharp!" he laughed, and put his towel back in his pack. "Are we ready?" he said firmly, instantly serious.

"Almost," Eternal said. "We just needed to make sure that we were on the same page." She looked at Dal knowingly. "Let's get going. We need to get there before it gets dark."

The group loaded up their things and began their trip to the end of town, all of their faces grim.

 **Chapter 8 - Good & Evil?**

Shassy had almost freed herself from the ropes when she heard footsteps...

She had been working furiously, trying to work her way through her bonds. When she was almost completely through the ropes, she heard keys jingling at the door. She quickly leaned back in her chair, and put her hands behind her back, as if to appear still tied up.

A guard appeared in the doorway with a small metal tray. It had a simple meal with a cup of some sort of drink. "Time for your meal, Missy," he said in a gravelly voice. He walked towards Shassy and placed the tray on the table next to her. Smiling at her, the guard looked Shassy up and down and said, "I was supposed to bring you this meal, but first, I think I'll make a meal out of you!"

Laughing, he reached out to grab her. Shassy's mind was racing. Right before his hands touched her, Shassy grabbed the tray and swung at the guard with all her might!

Clang!

There was a satisfying crash, as the tray connected with the guards head. Stumbling, he went down like a sack of potatoes. Shassy jumped up from her chair and went to hit the guard again, but there was no need. He was completely knocked out and had a huge knot on his forehead.

Thinking quickly, Shassy closed the cell door and turned back to face the guard. "Hope you enjoyed your meal!" she said mockingly. "That's the last time you will EVER try to get dessert from me!"

Looking down at the guard, Shassy saw his keyring and quickly went for it. "Jackpot!" she said excitedly. "Now all I need to do is find Kaw-Kaw, and get out of here!"

Grabbing the keys from the guards belt, Shassy left her cell, locking the door behind her and began to slowly walk down the hallway, looking for a way to escape.

* * *

Kage looked up, seeing the town grow closer and closer. He was moving slowly and limping slightly, but he was almost there. He had to get back. He had to stop it all.

Ever since Kage woke up, he felt different. As if the blast had somehow cleared his mind.

Quickening his pace, Kage trudged on. Hopefully he would get back before it was too late... hopefully.

* * *

They were all walking slowly.

After the troupe left Savara's shop, Eternal had quickly buffed Leon and Savara, and was busy buffing Dal as they walked. "Only a few more and we will be ready," she said cheerfully.

Dal looked at Eternal carefully. He could see she was trying to maintain good spirits, but as they grew close to their destination, everyone had quit speaking.

Savara kept shifting his axe from one shoulder to the other. He was clearly uncomfortable with the situation, but he didn't say anything about it. Leon was looking ahead firmly with fire in his eyes. He kept on drying his hands on a small towel at his belt. Dal was looking down at the ground, holding a crumpled piece of paper in his hands.

Eternal looked at Dal's hands and saw the paper. Dal noticed her stare and handed the paper over to her. It was a caricature of Shassy that Dal had drawn a few days earlier.

"Don't worry Dal," Eternal said softly. "We are going to get her out of there. That you can be sure of."

Savara and Leon nodded their heads in agreement. "We got this Dal!" Savara said confidently. "As long as I can swing this Axe, I'll make sure she gets out!"

Crack!

Leon smacked his towel against a brick wall... debris went flying. "Let's not forget about my towels. I'll wash and dry them all!"

Dal laughed with his friends, but instantly silenced himself... they had arrived.

 **Chapter 9 - Confrontation**

After they had drugged and captured Shassy, SilentTwo instructed Hoshi and Damio to get rid of the cart they brought Shassy there in. "We need to rid ourselves of any evidence!" SilentTwo screamed. "Get that cart out of here, along with anything else that will lead people to us!" Hoshi and Damio muttered angrily as they were pushing the cart away.

Meanwhile, SilentOne and Cheng were busy looking through stacks of parchment at the silver table. "It is not in that pile!" SilentOne said with frustration in his voice. "We already went through that one!"

Cheng sighed. "Which stacks have we already gone through?" he said tiredly. "We have been doing this for hours... I'm tired and thirsty."

SilentOne looked up. "Fine! Leave!" he spewed angrily. "I move much faster without you in my way!" Cheng happily jumped up from the table, and ran off towards the dining hall.

SilentTwo turned towards the table. "What are you looking for now?" she asked suspiciously. "You have tried everything in your book to pull the Domo out of the pocket." She turned toward Kaw-Kaw's cage. "If we can't use it in that pocket, what else can we do beside kill it?"

SilentOne laughed softly. "My dear sister. The Domo is far too valuable for us to destroy it." Standing up, he looked firmly at SilentTwo. "No, we need to find a different way, and I believe that Shassy holds the key to how." SilentOne began walking towards the dining hall. "Come, sister. We need to bring up our strength and try a new approach."

As SilentTwo fell into place next to her brother, she asked softly. "Shassy can remove the Domo? How?"

SilentOne was suddenly cheerful. "Soon, sister!" he beamed. "But first, let's enjoy a fine meal. After we are done, send Damio and Hoshi downstairs to bring Miss Shassy to us!"

They both shared a laugh and continued on their way to the dining hall.

* * *

Dal, Eternal, Leon, and Savara were at the abandoned storefront that Shassy had been taken into. Looking for a way in, Savara began to walk around the building. The rest of the Troupe began investigating the front and sides, hoping to find a way in. After several minutes, Savara yelled excitedly, "Hey, guys, I think I found something!"

As the rest joined Savara, they saw steps leading to a cellar door. Dal walked down the steps and studied the door. "Its got a big lock on it... would you do the honors Savara?"

Dal stepped out of the way as Savara moved towards the door. It only took one swing of his axe to completely destroy the lock... along with most of the door.

"Oops," Savara said sheepishly. "I didn't even hit it that hard."

Eternal turned to Savara and said, "If you can hit them as hard as you hit that door, then we have already won the battle!" They all had a small laugh, then as they began to walk down the cellar steps...

"Stop!"

They all turned to see a man in ripped clothing standing behind them. He spoke to them loudly, "If you try to enter through that door, you will all die!"

Preparing for the worst, the Troupe faced Kage.

 **Chapter 10 - First Blood**

Shassy could hear water dripping as she crept down the hallway. The corridor was slightly damp and musty to the smell. There seemed to be a few rats running around also. Shassy couldn't see them but she would occasionally step on one and could hear their squeaks.

"Yuck," Shassy thought. "If I step on one more rat, I'll scream." She knew that would bring trouble, so she just quickened her pace until she found her way to the end of the corridor.

As she looked around, she saw steps at the end of the hall. They went upward to a large wooden door. She could see some light coming from underneath it. "Jackpot!" she whispered furiously. As she worked her way up the steps she pulled out the keys she stole from the guard. "One of these is bound to open up this door," she muttered. And went to work trying to find the right key.

* * *

"If you try to enter through that door, you will all die!"

Kage's words startled the Troupe, but they recovered quickly. Dal jumped up from the cellar door to face Kage, everyone followed suit. Savara suddenly screamed in anger and jumped at Kage, swinging with his axe. He hit nothing but air. Kage was not standing where he was moments ago.

"Hold!"

Off to their left, Kage appeared with his hands in front of him. His face had a pleading look on it. "Do not attack! I mean you no harm!" He was slowly backing up as he spoke.

Leon stepped forward, a towel spinning with incredible speed over his head. "Stay where you are, Kage! We will not be tricked by one of the Retros!"

Kage stopped backing up and stood firmly. "I say again, I mean you no harm!" His face looked anguished. "I was only trying to save you from death!" He pointed towards the cellar door. "If you had walked through that door, you would all be killed. Our base has many ways in, but only few of them will let you live to tell the tale!"

Dal spoke first. "How can we trust you, Kage? We saw you fight Shassy. We know who you work for!"

Eternal stepped forward next to Dal, as Leon was still spinning his towel. Savara managed to pull his axe out of the ground and stepped up to join his friends.

Kage smiled thinly and put his hands down. "Please, I am telling you the truth. If you will just give me a moment to explain..." As he was speaking, Kage's eyes rolled back his head, and he stumbled and fell to the ground.

Eternal pushed past Dal and moved herself in front of Kage. As the others watched, Eternal began to heal Kage of his wounds.

After several minutes, Kage eventually opened his eyes again. Looking at Eternal, Kage spoke softly. "Thank you, m'lady. I am forever in your debt."

Eternal blushed as Kage slowly stood up. "Now," he said firmly, "allow me to explain myself, and more importantly, allow me to show you the way inside."

* * *

Cheng had finished his meal and was happily walking around the Retro Base. He was glad to be away from SilentOne and SilentTwo. They always yelled and they never knew when to take cookie breaks. Maybe he could bring a few extra trays for himself next time. As he was walking along, he decided to go check on Shassy to see if she was ok. It would only take a minute, and maybe he could talk to her a little before the Silent Twins took her to do who-knows-what to her.

 **Chapter 11 - Summed Up**

Hoshi and Damio pushed the cart out of the Base and where looking around for a good place to stash it. "We can just throw it in the shed," Damio said. "No-one ever looks in there anyway."

Hoshi looked at the run-down shed, and nodded her head in agreement. "Yup, let's just dump it in there and go back. But before we go in, let's grab a few cookies from the shop!"

The two cookie makers quickly dumped the cart in the shed, and ran towards their shop. They knew if they came back too late, the Silent Twins would be very mad. As the rounded the corner, they both saw the Troupe standing at the rear of the storefront. As they watched, they saw Kage approach them, and begin talking to them.

"Something is wrong!" Damio whispered. "Kage shouldn't be talking to them. He wouldn't!" Turning to Hoshi, Damio pleaded with her. "We need to get inside and tell the Silent's about this right now!" He smiled largely. "We may even get rewarded for it!"

Hoshi was not as enthusiastic. "I want cookies!" she pouted. "All the ones at the base are old and yucky. Let's grab some cookies first, and then we can tell the Silents what's up!"

Damio started to argue with Hoshi, but conceded quickly. He was hungry for cookies too. "Okay, fine! Let's get the cookies then get back immediately!"

* * *

Cheng knew something was wrong when he opened the dungeon's door. The guard was not in the hallway where he usually would have been. Running to Shassy's door, he looked in and saw the room was empty, except for a knocked out guard. Cheng was filled with a mixture of emotions. He was scared and worried that Shassy had escaped. If the Silent Twins knew, they would probably kill him. But at the same time, Cheng was also happy for Shassy. He hoped she would be able to get away from this place.

Thinking quickly, Cheng ran down the hallway in search of Shassy. He knew that he had to find her before they did.

"Just stay hidden, Shassy," Cheng murmured to himself, as he continued his search.

 **Chapter 12 - Lions' Den**

Shassy found the key!

She had been looking through her stolen keyring trying to find the right one. After fighting with it for several minutes, she finally found the right one! Slowly turning it to avoid making excess noise, Shassy peeked through the door a crack to see if she could safely go through.

She couldn't see very far, but the coast appeared clear, so she slowly opened the door up all the way.

She found herself standing in a large stateroom that had torches lined up on the far wall. There was only one other doorway visible, and she started towards it. On her way she passed a large silver table covered with parchment. Shassy's curiosity got the best of her and she moved in for a closer look.

Much to her surprise, she saw pictographs of a Domo. They looked a little like Kaw-Kaw. And even though she couldn't read the writing, she had a feeling like it was some kind of instruction manual. Without warning Shassy heard a little 'Mew-Mew' noise coming from behind her. Spinning around she was shocked to see a small cage with her pocket hanging in it! And there was Kaw peering out of the top of it!

"KAW!" Shassy whispered furiously, as she ran to the cage. "How's my lil Kaw?!" Shassy smiled as Kaw-Kaw's eyes got big and happy. "Nobody hurt you, did they?" Shassy said, concerned. But Kaw seemed no worse for wear.

Looking around the stateroom, Shassy spoke to Kaw-Kaw softly. "I'm gonna get us outta here, Kaw. Just let me find a way to get you out of this cage..." Before Shassy could finish speaking, she heard noises coming from the other end of the hall. Someone was coming! Thinking quickly, Shassy dived past the cage and behind a barrel.

"...And that is how we are going to convince her to give it to us!" SilentOne was saying to his sister.

SilentTwo threw back her head and laughed. "It is so simple, brother. She will give us the Domo, or we will destroy her!"

When they arrived at the table, SilentOne's eyes narrowed. "Where is Cheng? And why have my scrolls been moved?!" Searching the area, SilentOne looked at Kaw-Kaw's cage. Standing up, he walked towards the cage, and began to look into it intently.

Shassy's heart was in her chest and she tried to pull herself behind the barrel further... but SilentOne was did not see her. His eyes were glued to little Kaw.

Spinning around towards his sister, SilentOne hissed. "Get Cheng! Tell him to bring Shassy to me now. The time has come to reclaim what is rightfully ours."

SilentTwo looked angrily at her brother, but she did not argue. "As you wish, my brother," she said as she walked towards the dungeons.

 **Chapter 13 - Unlucky**

"Allow me to explain myself, and more importantly, allow me to show you the way inside."

Kage, after being revived by Eternal, pointed towards a tree behind them in the back lot of the abandoned storefront. He moved towards the tree, and the others followed cautiously behind him. "I'm sorry for rushing us along," Kage said apologetically, "but time is of the essence, and we haven't much left."

When everyone was next to the tree, Kage knocked on it three times. Instantly, a door opened on the side of the tree. "Hurry please!" Kage whispered excitedly. "We mustn't be seen!" Once inside the tree, Kage began leading the Troupe down a long winding staircase. When they were halfway down Kage froze. Voices were echoing up from below.

Holding up a hand for silence. Kage reached towards the staircase walls. After finding the right stone, he pushed. The wall opened, and he ushered them all through. They were in a small storeroom that was filled with trays of cookies.

After all were in the room, Kage pushed the wall again until he heard a click. Then he faced the Troupe. "Friends, I do not have a lot of time for explanations, but I will sum it up quickly."

Leaning against the wall tiredly, Kage spoke. "Many years ago I was an Apprentice Mercenary under the guidance of my mentor Yuuki-sama. She was a wise master, and I was pleased to be instructed by her." His face darkened. "Then one day she was gone. I searched for her everywhere, but there was no trace of her."

The others began to relax as Kage continued. "During my search I met a woman. Her name was Asmeret." Kage said her name through clenched teeth. "She told me she could reunite me with my mentor, so long as I agreed to serve her for a time." Kage looked at them with pain in his eyes. "She tricked me. Once I was in her service she bewitched me. I was unable to break the spell. I was trapped. That is, until I fought with Shassy."

Dal's eyes had been looking at the ground, but at the mention of Shassy, he looked up fiercely. "You are lucky I wasn't there for that battle. I would have had to destroy you!"

Eternal waved her hand at Dal. "Please, Dal, he was not himself. Let him finish."

Kage smiled at Eternal and gave her a small bow. "Again, I thank you, m'lady." Eternal once again blushed deeply.

Kage continued. "After Asmeret was destroyed, I thought I would be free, but the Twins had different plans." He turned sheepishly towards Dal. "I'm sorry for attacking Shassy, Dal, but you see I was not myself." Dal nodded his head but said nothing. "Now we have other enemies to destroy," Kage said softly. "The Silent Twins have picked up where Asmeret left off, and we must stop them before they succeed in their plans!" Looking at the others Kage asked, "Will you help me stop them, and free the Domo?"

Savara leaned on his axe and spoke to Kage. "We have the same goal as you do, Kage. Let's go free the Domo." Looking at Dal, he quickly added, "And of course, Shassy as well."

Everyone nodded in agreement. They readied themselves and moved towards the storeroom door.

 **Chapter 14 - All is Lost**

Hoshi and Damio were busy at their store filling their pockets with cookies.

"Hurry up, Hoshi!" Damio said worriedly. "I have a bad feeling about what we just saw!"

Hoshi looked up from the tray she was in front of, and shook her head at Damio. "Is it always business with you?" she asked irritably. "The Silent Twins have done nothing but yell, scream, and holler at us since we joined up with them!" Turning back towards the cookies she added, "It will serve them right if something bad happens while we are gone! I for one am tired of being treated badly by them!"

It was Damio's turn to be irritable. "You think I don't know that?" he said, half yelling. "I have been there with you the whole time." Damio suddenly turned serious. "Do you think we would even be working for them if they didn't threaten to burn our store to the ground?"

Hoshi sighed and agreed. "I know, I know, but I'm just sick of them. I almost don't care if they burn the store down. At least we would be free."

Damio's eyes grew large. "Now I know you are crazy! This store is all we have!" Grabbing Hoshi's hand, Damio said softly. "I know you hate this, but it won't be much longer." He smiled knowingly. "I have been talking to Cheng about this. He is tired of it too." He smiled again at Hoshi. "C'mon, I'll tell you about it when we get back. Let's go!"

* * *

Cheng knew that Shassy couldn't be far away, Still, he could find no trace of where she went. "I hope she made it out of here," Cheng said hopefully. But he knew there was no way she could escape without someone knowing about it. Turning the corner, Cheng began methodically checking doors as he moved down the hallway. If Shassy had managed to hide here, maybe he could convince her to come with him, and possibly escape!

At the end of the hallway Cheng stopped. The storeroom door was in front of him, and he heard voices coming from the other side. Thinking quickly, he ducked behind a large suit of armor, and hid. Almost instantly, the door opened and the Troupe moved cautiously out.

Cheng almost cried out when he saw them. It was Kage! And it seemed that several of the store owners were with him. As they moved by, he heard Kage say, "We need to get to the Main Hall. Once we find the Domo and secure it, we can rescue Shassy from her prison."

Cheng didn't know what Kage was up to, but after he heard him say Shassy's name, he knew he had to find out! Creeping out from behind the armor, Cheng cautiously followed the Troupe, keeping to the shadows. Whatever they had planned, he wanted to be there to see it.

 **Chapter 15 - Kingdom Come**

Shassy peeked out from behind the barrel. SilentOne was still standing there, staring at Kaw's cage. Suddenly, without moving his eyes, SilentOne spoke.

"You may come out from there any time you like, Miss Shassy."

SilentOne's voice echoed in the large room. Shassy jumped in her hiding spot but she didn't move. SilentOne stepped to the side of the cage and held out his hand. "Come now. Don't make me say it again."

This time his eyes were looking right at the barrel. Shassy slowly stood up and faced SilentOne.

He smiled down at her. "Ah, there you are. Please, this way." He waved his hand towards a chair at the table, but Shassy didn't move. "Now!"

SilentOne's yell filled the room, and Shassy jumped up and moved quickly into the offered chair. She looked back, and heard Kaw making unhappy noises from his cage. Looking up at SilentOne, Shassy opened her mouth to speak, but SilentOne shushed her.

"I sent my sister and minions away to 'get' you so that you and I could have a bit of time together." SilentOne looked at Shassy tiredly. "I am hoping we can end this as nicely as possible." Nodding over at Kaw-Kaw, SilentOne spoke evenly. "All we want is the Domo, and all you have to do is give him to me freely."

Shassy looked around the room, then back at SilentOne. Speaking more bravely than she felt, Shassy said, "And what if I refuse?"

SilentOne threw back his head and laughed. "I don't think you understand completely." Suddenly, SilentOne's hand flowed through the air. As his hand moved it ripped open a portal. SilentOne pointed into the portal. "Look, Shassy, look at your friends!"

As Shassy drew near, she could see the Troupe. Dal was in front, Kage and Eternal were behind, and Savara and Leon were following up the back. They were all walking down a hallway. It looked like the one she just came from.

SilentOne turned to Shassy. "You see my dear? You friends are coming to 'save' you! As soon as they enter here I shall destroy them!" His voice suddenly soft, SilentOne added, "That is, I'll destroy them unless you give me the Domo." Waving his hand again, the portal vanished, leaving Shassy standing there with SilentOne. Grabbing her shoulders SilentOne shook Shassy. "Now, give me the Domo!"

* * *

Damio and Hoshi had just got back to the secret lair from their store, when they ran into SilentTwo.

"Where have you been?" SilentTwo screamed at them. "You are needed downstairs!" Smacking them in the head, SilentTwo continued to verbally abuse them.

"We're sorry!" Damio said. "We were only gone a minute."

SilentTwo just sighed, and turned away from them in frustration. "You two are the most useless minions that anyone has ever had to suffer through. I swear if it was up to me..."

Hoshi looked angrily at SilentTwo's back, and then smiled at Damio.

Clang!

SilentTwo didn't even get a chance to finish speaking when Hoshi smacked her in the head with a tray of cookies. SilentTwo's eyes rolled back in her head, and she instantly dropped to the floor in a heap.

Damio looked at Hoshi with surprise. "Wow, I didn't know you had it in you! That was Awesome!"

Hoshi looked back at Damio nervously. "I don't think that was a good idea." She smiled weakly. "When she wakes up, she is gonna kill us."

Damio just laughed. "She deserved it. But we need to get out of here. Let's get Cheng and run for it!" They ran down the hall together, hoping to find Cheng before SilentTwo woke up.

* * *

Cheng moved behind another wall as he followed the Troupe. They had been moving slowly but surely towards the main hall. Even though he wanted to stay hidden, Cheng knew that once the Troupe entered the main area, they would run into the Silent Twins.

 **Chapter 16 - End**

The Troupe was slowly working its way to the main chamber. They were almost there when Kage held up his hand for quiet. "My friends, I must warn you of what is to come." Pointing at the door, Kage said, "Through this door lies the Domo you seek." Turning to Dal, he winked and added, "Shassy is there also." Kage paused before speaking again. "I will not fool you. The Silent Twins are very dangerous. There is a possibility that some of us will not come out of this alive..."

Savara shook his head and interrupted, "There is no fear among us, Kage. We know what we face."

Leon nodded seriously and drew two towels from his belt like pistols. "Just lead us to them and we will do the rest."

Kage nodded his understanding and put his hand on the door to open it.

"Wait!"

Cheng jumped out from behind a large vase. The Troupe instantly had him pinned against the wall.

"What do we have here?" Savara growled.

"Looks like we have a spy," Leon said angrily.

Cheng stuttered as he spoke. "I... I am no s-spy!" Looking around nervously, he added, "I'm here to save Shassy and leave this place!" He quickly became serious. "Kage is the one you should be worried about!" He pointed at Kage. "He works for them!"

The Troupe looked at Kage in surprise. Kage rolled his eyes and spoke to Cheng. "There is too much to explain and not enough time to do it properly." Grabbing Cheng by the shoulders, Kage said, "Just know that we are all on the same side, with the same goals."

Cheng looked suspiciously at Kage, and then the others. Finally he accepted it and said, "Okay, but we must hurry, Shassy has escaped her prison and is hiding somewhere."

Finally sorted, the Troupe turned towards the door, and their destiny.

* * *

SilentOne continued to shake Shassy by her shoulders. All the while yelling at her, "Give me the Domo!"

Shassy tried to break free but SilentOne's grip was too firm. Thinking quickly, Shassy kicked SilentOne in his shin. He released her with a scream of pain. "AAAHHHHHH!"

Shassy backed away from him, looking for a way to escape. As she was backing up she ran into Kaw-Kaw's cage and the door popped open.

SilentOne was on the floor now, cursing in pain, and Shassy took her opportunity. Smacking the cage door open, Shassy grabbed her pocket! Shassy hugged Kaw close. "Hi, lil man. You ready to get outta here?"

Kaw-Kaw was gurgling and talking to her, and Shassy couldn't understand any of it. "Kaw-wow bang bang! Rawr rawr kaw!" But he seemed ok. Shassy ran frantically for the door and threw it open.

Ka-Blam!

SilentTwo's blast nailed Shassy in the chest and sent her flying across the room. As SilentTwo entered, you could see a large gash on her forehead. "Those little monsters thought they could take me out with a cookie tray?" SilentTwo laughed manically. "I'll destroy them all... once I finish you off!"

Shassy groaned in pain and tried to lift herself from the floor. It felt like someone had hit her with a truck! Looking up she saw SilentTwo standing in front of her.

SilentTwo's eyes were filled with fire. "The Domo. You have it with you!" Holding out her hand, SilentTwo demanded, "Give it to me, or die where you lay!"

Shassy found her courage and sat up. "Do what you must! But you are never getting Kaw!"

SilentTwo laughed and held up both hands. Fire slowly grew in her palms. Reaching back, SilentTwo threw her fire... and was blown back by a blast of air!

It was Kage!

"Leave her be, Silent!" Kage yelled toward her. "The Domo will be coming with us!"

The Troupe fanned out into the great hall, and surrounded SilentTwo. Savara and Leon flanked her sides and Eternal and Dal came at her head on.

As they grew near SilentTwo began laughing hysterically. "So Kage, finally back to your old self?" Facing them all, she said laughingly, "It does not matter. Not even you can match my skills!"

SilentTwo suddenly flew into the air and blasted a large energy bolt. No one could escape and all were frozen in place.

Dal's eyes caught Shassy's. He could not move or even speak. "If only I could tell her to run..." he thought.

SilentTwo's magical grip tightened, making it hard for any of them to breath. The room began to fade into darkness...

SilentTwo looked approvingly at her paralyzed captives. Turning back towards Shassy, SilentTwo once again had fire in her hands. "What will it be, Miss Shassy? The Domo, or death?"

Shassy glared up at SilentTwo. Feeling braver than she felt, Shassy said, "Do your worst. I'll never give Kaw to you!"

SilentTwo raised her hands to strike. "Bye Bye, Shassy, we hardly knew you!"

Intense heat surrounded Shassy. She screamed in pain as SilentTwo's attack burned into her. This was it. This was the end...

Zap!

The air crackled around Shassy as she heard a voice say, "Stand back, sister. The Domo will be mine!"

SilentOne faced them from the floor, sending a powerful blast of energy at his sister. She shrieked and faced her brother. "This Domo belongs to me!" Fire flew from her hands as she returned the attack on her brother. The circle of flames and electricity grew larger and larger around them.

Shassy looked up from the ground. Her head was heavy and she was slowly fading away. Looking at lil Kaw, Shassy said weakly. "You got one more in you, lil guy?" Kaw looked up with big eyes and said one word: "Kaw!"

Smiling at him Shassy hugged her pocket, and with her last bit of energy she lifted it up in the air.

Boom!

The hallway shook and stones rattled free. Instantaneously the Troupe was freed from their magical prison.

As Dal looked up, all he saw was smoke and falling debris. Yelling at the others, Dal said, "Grab the Domo, and I'll get Shassy!"

As the others scrambled to avoid falling rocks, Dal rushed over to Shassy. As he arrived he saw her motionless. She was not moving... or breathing. Grabbing her up, Dal screamed to the others, "Please help me!"

Savara, Cheng and Leon ran to help Dal, as Eternal acquired Kaw. She lifted him up in a protective magical bubble, and followed the rest.

Kage was standing where the Silents had their final battle. He reached down through the dust and smoke and picked up a bundle from the floor. Then he ran to follow them.

The whole place was coming down! As the Troupe ran through the hallways, their path was blocked by falling stone.

"Where do we go?" Eternal yelled frantically. "There is no other way out!"

Suddenly a cookie tray flew over their heads and crashed into the wall. A large hole was left in its place. As the Troupe looked where the tray came from, they saw Damio and Hoshi.

"There is always another way!" Hoshi yelled happily as they ran towards the group. Cheng screamed in delight as he was reunited with his two friends.

Hoshi took charge. "Let's get out of here before this whole place comes down! C'mon, follow me!"

Hoshi led them all through the hole in the wall, which led to the stairway they first entered in. Bricks smashed down around them as they jumped through the hole in the tree. As they looked back, they saw the ground collapse, swallowing up the storefront and the tree. Soon there was a large smoking hole in the ground.

As they stared in awe, Dal cried out to Eternal. "Please heal her!"

Eternal rushed to Dal's side and looked at Shassy. Shassy's eyes were closed. she looked peaceful. Growing pale, Eternal turned to Dal. "Dal... I can only heal the hurt... I can't raise the dead... I'm sorry."

A single tear fell from Dal's face onto Shassy. Looking up at Eternal, he cried, "It's not fair. Why did she have to die?"

As the others came to Dal to comfort him, Shassy's pocket began to wiggle and shake. As they looked down, suddenly Kaw jumped out.

Kaw moved over to Shassy and placed his paws on her. His little mouth mumbled as he did. "Mama mama Kaw kun."

Intense light!

It was all around them, making it bright as day. It grew and grew, and then nothing! As the light faded, the Troupe looked where Kaw was. But he was gone!

As the others looked around for Kaw, Dal looked down at Shassy. She looked so peaceful there, almost like she was sleeping. Turning away, Dal's tears fell freely.

"What's wrong, Dal?" Shassy was looking up at him with surprise in her eyes. "Where are we?"

Dal hugged Shassy close and whispered in her ear, "We are right where we need to be. Together."

 **Chapter 17 - Epilogue**

Hoshi, Damio and Cheng were laughing and giving each other High-Fives. "Finally we are free of those two!" Damio said joyously. "Now we can go back to our bakery and do what we do best... making cookies!"

Dal and Shassy were sitting on the ground together talking with Eternal. Leon had laid a few of his towels down on the ground so everyone could sit without getting dirty. Savara was reluctantly collecting all the weapons he had lent to the Troupe. "Sorry guys, business is bad enough as it is. I would lose my store if I didn't get these back."

Dal was happily telling Shassy about their escape. "We almost didn't make it out! fortunately, Hoshi threw a tray through the wall, or we would still be in there!"

Shassy was busy thanking everyone for their help. "Thank you so much, guys! I thought I was done for! You all came at just the right time!" She got quiet for a moment before she spoke again. "I... I just wish I knew what happened to little Kaw."

Kage stood up from his bundle and spoke. "I would be glad to tell you all about it, Miss Shassy, but I think my friend can tell you better than I."

Behind Kage, the bundle had stood up and was walking with him. As they arrived, the Troupe could see that it was a woman of medium age. Kage moved back and waved the woman in front of him. "Everyone, this is my friend and Mentor, SilentWhim."

SilentWhim nodded her greetings to everyone. She looked very pale and weak, but her eyes had wisdom, and when she spoke her voice had fiery strength in it. "Hello to you all. As Kage said, I will be glad to explain all to you."

Cheng, Damio, and Hoshi had moved closer and sat down with the others.

"I must first apologize for what has happened. If I had been on my guard, perhaps none of this would have occurred." SilentWhim sighed softly before she continued her tale. "I thought I could stop Asmeret by myself. I knew of her plans to take control of OT Town. What I didn't know was that she was in possession of a Domo."

Smiling down at Shassy, SilentWhim added, "As you all already know, Domos have great power within them. When I met with Asmeret, she used her Domo to enslave me. There was no way to escape, but I resisted her." Looking up with pain in her eyes, SilentWhim said angrily, "She used her magic to split me in half. And used me to create SilentOne and SilentTwo!"

Everyone gasped in surprise. SilentWhim nodded gravely. "Yes, it was me who did all those terrible things, but you must believe me when I say that I wanted no part of it! There is nothing quite as disturbing as to see through two sets of eyes, but have no control over my actions."

Suddenly cheerful, SilentWhim said happily, "I am glad to be myself again though. When my two halves met in battle, somehow I was made whole again." Looking at Shassy, she added, "I think it was your little Domo friend that broke the spell."

Shassy looked up at SilentWhim. "But... what happened to little Kaw?" Looking at Dal, she said, "When I woke up, Kaw was gone, and everyone was around me."

SilentWhim put her hand on Shassy's shoulder and said softly, "My dear, you didn't wake up. You were brought back to life... by your little friend."

As Shassy looked at the others in shock, SilentWhim continued. "Your little Domo loved you Shassy. He thought that your life was worth more than his, so he gave his life-force to you."

SilentWhim looked at Dal. He was holding Shassy's hand, looking in her eyes. Smiling wisely at Shassy, SilentWhim continued, "I think little Kaw made the right choice."

SilentWhim waved her hands at the smoking hole in the ground. "It is all over now my friends. We must rebuild what has been lost."

Everyone rose together and began to go off in different directions. Savara waved goodbye and began walking towards his shop, arms filled with weapons. Leon recovered his towels and informed everyone to stop by his shop later. Eternal took Kage's hands in her own as they began walking with SilentWhim. Damio, Cheng and Hoshi were all hand in hand, heading back to their store

Dal and Shassy were the last to leave. As they walked away together, Shassy put her head on Dal's shoulder. She was sad knowing she would never see her little friend again, but she was glad to have made so many new ones.

Dal seemed to sense what she was thinking. Holding her close, Dal kissed Shassy and said, "Kaw-Kaw will always be out there, looking after you... and I will be too."

* * *

Deep inside her secret hideout, Asmeret watched the scene through her crystal ball. Smiling, she waved her hand over it and the vision vanished. Turning to her side, she spoke to a small white Domo. "How is my little Shinichi? We will show them all, won't we?" Her little white Domo laughed in his pocket, she laughed with him...

* * *

There were kittens everywhere, and a little brown Domo happily chasing them around. Every now and then he would act tough and say, "Rawr Rawr," but then he would giggle and go back to playing with the kittens.

In the distance, there was a man whistling. All the kittens came running towards him excitedly. The man was in an all white outfit with a matching hat that said 'milk' on it. As he was whistling, he was setting down large saucers of milk.

All the kittens ran towards the man, and soon they were all lapping up the milk. The man sat down on a rock besides them to watch. As he watched, the little brown Domo walked up to them. Turning to see the Domo, the man spoke. "Hi there, Kaw-Kaw. Did you have fun in OT Town?"

Kaw looked up happily at the man and said, "Kaw Kaw Domo Happy Shassy."

The man on the rock laughed and reached down to pet lil Kaw. As he was petting Kaw, two more men approached. they were both wearing red suits, and had big name tags on their chests. One said 'Saphars', the other said 'Colbeagle.'

They waved at the man and sat on some other rocks close by. Looking at Kaw, they asked, "Hey, Prophet, where did Kaw-Kaw go this time?"

The Milkman smiled at them and spoke. "He had himself a little adventure. I think he had a good time too."

Saphars and Colbeagle looked at each other seriously. "We have a new problem. I think little Kaw is perfect for the job." Turning to face Kaw, they all asked, "Are you ready for your next adventure?"

Kaw looked back at them all happily and said one word...

"Kaw!"

The End


	42. The Return of the OT Domo

The Return of the OT Domo

When we were all together last, we saw the much needed end to the tyranny of the Silent Twins, and how OT Town was saved by our heroes... and of course, little Kaw.

Looking at the little town of OT you would see that visually, not a lot has changed there. Some new people have moved in, others have packed up and moved away. Still, it was pretty much the same happy little town that it always was

Yet, The story is not over... Some time has passed since we last checked in, and time, as we all know, has a way of changing everything.

 **Chapter 1 - New Start**

Celebration! It was everywhere you looked. People were hanging streamers from their storefronts. And children were running around laughing, with sparklers in their hands.

OT Town was celebrating its centennial. For the past one hundred years, the town had thrived. Everyone was looking forward to the festivals and parties that were to come. The town square was alive with workers setting up a stage for the centennial officials. Savara was in charge of the work crews, and you could hear him yelling all across town.

"Get that support beam under the stage!" he raged. "There is no way it will hold weight without it!" Savara looked back down at his clipboard and sighed. "This is never gonna be done on time if I have to baby-sit these guys all day."

Savara had been chosen by the townsfolk to oversee the construction for the centennial celebration, but he was beginning to regret that he said yes to the job. Looking back up from his clipboard, he saw Hoshi, Damio, and Cheng approaching. He smiled and waved to them. "Hi, guys! What do you have there?"

After the daring escape from the Silent Twins underground lair, the Cookie Crew decided to expand their store. They now supplied cookies to half the county, and had won several awards for their cookie-making skill.

Damio waved back as Cheng and Hoshi pushed their cart up. "Hi, Sava," Cheng said cheerfully. "We have literally brought a ton of cookies!" Looking around at the disarray, Cheng asked cautiously, "How goes the construction?"

Savara looked back at his work crew. They were still struggling to put the beam under the stage properly. It didn't look like they would succeed any time soon.

Throwing his clipboard down in disgust, Savara waved his hand at the workers. "If they can't even put a support beam under a stage, then how will we ever get this done in time?" Turning to the Cookie Crew, Savara smiled and said, "Maybe I just need to take a quick cookie break. Y'know, recharge my batteries!" Savara handed his clipboard to a confused worker, and then got down from the stage to join his friends.

* * *

Leon was in Awe.

Standing in front of Dal's Caricature Shop, Leon looked up at a huge picture. It was a drawing of the town of OT, with a big shiny '100 Years' in the middle of it. Dal was putting the finishing touches on it.

"It looks incredible!" Leon said in shock. "How long did it take you to do?"

Just at that moment, Shassy came out of the shop and said irritatedly, "He took longer than he should have!" Winking at Leon, Shassy added, "If he spent one more minute on it, he would be sleeping on the couch permanently!" Dal looked down at them and smiled, then he went back to his work.

Dal and Shassy had enjoyed a long wonderful courtship, and were soon to be married. Dal begged Shassy to move in with him, and after much debate, she finally conceded.

Leon was still stunned by the picture, but he finally turned away and asked the two, "Have you guys seen Eternal and Kage lately?" He kicked the ground distractedly. "I need to give them their gifts, since I was out of town."

Kage and Eternal had been instantaneously pulled to one another. It seemed their destiny to spend their lives together. Soon after the Troupe had ended their adventures, Kage and Eternal were wed at a small ceremony with SilentWhim presiding over the union. Leon had not been able to attend due to the fact that he was at a Towel Convention that week.

Shassy smiled and put her hand on Leon's shoulder. "It's ok, Leon. Eternal and Kage knew you wouldn't be there. They are not mad at you at all!"

Leon looked back and smiled weakly. "I know they are not mad. I'm just upset to have missed it."

Dal put the final touches on the drawing, and then climbed down his ladder to join Leon and Shassy. "Hi, Leon!" Dal said cheerfully, "How have you been lately?"

Leon just grinned and replied, "I have been thinking a lot about our little Troupe. And I would love to go visit Eternal and Kage." He paused and said, "I just want us all to spend a little time together before the celebration."

Dal and Shassy nodded in agreement. Leon looked sheepish and added, "Do you mind if we stop and see Savara first?"

Dal laughed. "I don't see why not. It is on the way to Eternal and Kage's home." Winking at Shasta, he added, "Lets see what trouble Savara has gotten himself into leading that group of workers."

Dal, Shassy, and Leon rolled up the huge picture together, and then they headed towards the town square.

 **Chapter 2 - Reunion**

SilentWhim was pleading softly, "Take your time, Kage ...Take your time."

Kage wiped a few beads of sweat from his forehead and looked up with frustration at his mentor. "If I take any more time learning how to do this, the centennial will be over!"

Kage had been asked by the town officials if he would provide a 'light show' using his power over the elements. He hurriedly agreed to the task, but it was proving to be more work than expected.

Unperturbed by his tone, SilentWhim continued her instructions. "Hands in front! Now... once more."

Kage steadied his hands in front of him and repeated his enchantments. "Xiuhcoatl Vulcan Saraph!" In front of Kage a small red orb appeared. As he chanted, the orb began to change in size and shape. Soon it took on the appearance of a flaming red dragon.

With much effort Kage thrust his hands out in front of him and released the fiery apparition. It flew high above him in a slow arc, and then rushed down towards them. At the last moment, it skimmed by their heads and hurtled towards a stone wall with a target painted on it. The red dragon exploded in the center of the target with fiery destruction, and was gone.

SilentWhim watched the spectacle with a thin smile on her face, finally nodding her head in approval at Kage. "Well done, my pupil."

Kage, exhausted, slumped to his knees on the ground. SilentWhim calmly approached her student and put her hands on his shoulder. "You have improved greatly since we began your teachings on fire. Soon all of the elements will be yours to command."

Kage shook his head slowly. "I just don't understand." Looking at his mentor questioningly he asked, "Why is fire the hardest for me to master? It is my elemental spirit! I AM a fire dragon!" Sighing in frustration, Kage slowly stood up.

SilentWhim laughed at her student. "Which is precisely why it is the most difficult! It is the hardest element to control. Most difficult to master. And the most dangerous attack you will possess!" She smacked Kage on his head. "You are quite fortunate to learn it at such a young age. Most do not learn how to use fire until they are gray and withered!" She smiled at Kage and said loftily, "Of course, there are not many who have a teacher such as myself..."

While SilentWhim was chiding her pupil, Eternal ran outside of their home and cheered Kage. "That was amazing! I have never seen fire used that way before!"

Nodding to his mentor, Kage turned to greet his wife. "I had better master it soon or the centennial is going to have to find a new elemental for the celebration."

Hand in hand, the couple said their goodbyes to SilentWhim and walked towards their home. Once inside, Eternal gave her husband a cup of hot tea and some advice. "You have been working too hard on this. You need to take a step back from it for awhile."

Kage looked up from the table. "I would love to take a break. You're right, I'm pushing myself too hard. I assumed that fire would be the easiest for me to control. It is proving otherwise."

Eternal winked at Kage. "I have just the thing to cheer you up, sweety. Savara asked me if we would come into town today to help him with some preparations. I told him you can take one night off of your work to see an old friend."

Kage frowned slightly, then cheered himself. "You are right as always, my love. Seeing Savara may be just what the doctor ordered." Kissing his bride's hand, he got up from the table to prepare for a trip to town.

 **Chapter 3 - A New Problem**

As Shassy , Dal, and Leon walked towards the town square, you could hear the loud sounds of construction. Sawing, hammering, and metal clanging. All of it filled the air with discordant music. The square was really starting to look beautiful. The stage was almost completely built, and there were workers setting up chairs and refreshment stands. It looked like this was going to be the best celebration the town had ever seen.

As they rounded the corner, they saw Savara smiling and patting his foreman on the shoulder. "It looks great, just great!" As they looked up, they saw a partially painted monument. the bottom half was a spiral pillar that ended in a platform at the top, and the top half was a huge wooden '100 Years' that rested on the pillar's platform.

When Savara saw his friends, he immediately ran to them and threw his arms around all three. "Hi, guys! It's been too long. How are you all doing?" Waving his hand at all the construction, he asked, "What do you think? Can I build, or can I BUILD?!"

They all took turns saying hello to Savara and how much they loved the square. Dal and Shassy handed Dal's drawing to the foreman and walked back to Leon and Savara. Leon was asking, "Do you think we will have some time to visit Kage and Eternal? I still feel bad about missing their wedding..."

Savara quickly reassured Leon. "You are in luck, Leo! I spoke with Eternal earlier, and they are coming into town to visit today!" Winking at Dal and Shassy, Savara added, "I wasn't expecting you guys to show up today, so it will be a nice surprise reunion for us all!"

* * *

He was casually sitting on a park bench a little ways away from the town square. As he watched the Troupe from the distance, Liberi spoke to himself. "So they think everything will be fine and dandy for the centennial." As he spoke, he made a small circle in the air with one of his fingers. A small portal opened and a woman's face appeared. The woman barked a one word command. "Report!"

Liberi scanned the area to make sure he was alone. Then he replied. "All is going according to plan, Master. Soon we will be ready to launch our attack on OT Town."

The woman didn't speak. She just nodded her head and the portal vanished. Liberi stood up from his bench and then began to slowly walk away from town. Much needed to be done before they struck. He needed to contact the others.

* * *

Kage and Eternal were walking down the road towards town. It was a beautiful day, and they were taking their time to enjoy the scenery. The trees were full of blossoms, flowers were in bloom. A bee went whizzing by their heads on its way back to the hive.

Soon after they left, they heard a voice behind them. As they turned to see who it was, they saw SilentWhim hurrying herself to catch up to them. "Wait! Wait a moment!"

Kage and Eternal stopped to wait for her. As SilentWhim arrived she was huffing and puffing from the exertion. Eternal quickly asked. "What is it? What is wrong?"

SilentWhim paused for a few seconds to collect herself. Then she fixed a stern gaze upon them both. "Your friends... you are going to see them now?"

Eternal and Kage exchanged puzzled looks. "Yes we are," Kage answered. "Is everything ok?"

SilentWhim waved her hands in dismissal. "All will be explained soon enough. For now, we must hurry to town."

They allowed their elderly friend a moment to rest herself, then they are began to quickly move towards town.

 **Chapter 4 - Reawakening**

As Kage, Eternal and SilentWhim hurried towards town, Savara led the Troupe towards the Refreshment Stands, so they could say hello to the Cookie Crew.

Cheng was the first to see Dal, Shassy, and Leon. He quickly ran out from behind his stand to greet his old friends. "It's great to see you guys! We were hoping to run into you during the centennial, but this is even better!"

There were hugs all around as everyone got reacquainted with each other. Hoshi and Damio were excitedly telling Dal and Shassy about their cookie awards, and Leon and Cheng sat down to discuss all that had happened since they saw each other last.

The reunion was short lived however. Immediately after everyone had said their hellos, Kage, Eternal and SilentWhim arrived. Everyone jumped up to greet them, but they quickly quieted themselves when they saw how serious SilentWhim looked.

"It is good to see all of you again. I just wish that it was under better circumstances." SilentWhim paused and looked closely at everyone. Turning to Kage and Eternal she asked, "Is... Is this everyone?"

Eternal nodded her head, and Kage answered, "Yes. This is all of us from before..."

SilentWhim raised her hand to shush him. "This is not all. Something is missing."

As she spoke, SilentWhim began to study each person. When she arrived at Shassy she paused, then smiled and spoke. "My dear, where is your Domo?"

Shassy looked around at everyone with shock. After a moment she spoke to SilentWhim. "But... but Kaw, my Domo, gave his life for mine. He is gone."

SilentWhim patted Shassy on her arm. "No, no. Your Domo is not dead. Far from it." SilentWhim looked at Shassy's confusion and quickly reassured her. "Your Domo is alive and well. He was just waiting because you didn't need him anymore. But the time has come for you and your little friend to be reunited."

Shassy's jaw almost hit the ground. Everyone was shocked at the news. Questions began flying all around the Troupe. SilentWhim held her hands in the air for silence. After a few moments, everyone quieted down enough for her to finish.

"I have come here today to warn you all! Terrible things will happen to OT Town unless you all can stop it!" Looking gravely at everyone she continued. "Earlier today I felt a power... a presence I have not felt in a long time. I fear that we may not have much time to prepare."

 **Chapter 5 - Slap!**

Liberi walked away from the square, periodically checking to see if he was being followed. After a short time he arrived at the old VGG building. At one time it was a thriving business to help newcomers to the town. Now it was run down and deserted.

As Liberi was approaching the entrance he saw there was a beggar out front. Looking up, the beggar asked, "You think you could help out a newcomer? I do not know what I should do next..."

Liberi stared at the beggar. Then he reached into his pocket and pulled out what looked like a fish.

Slap!

Liberi knocked the beggar clear across the street with his fish slap. Putting the fish back in his pocket, he yelled at the beggar. "Stupid Noob! Figure it out for yourself. What do I look like? Some volunteer helper or something?" Shaking his head and muttering, Liberi said to himself, "Why is everyone here such an idiot? I'm glad I won't be here much longer."

After he was inside, Liberi walked to the far end of the building. There was a pile of rubble and broken plaster. Stopping in front of the pile, Liberi spoke. "C'mon, Bogdan. I know you are in there." After a few moments, a red light came on overhead, and the pile began to move itself to the side, revealing stairs leading down. Liberi began his decent.

At the bottom the stairway, it opened up into a medium sized room with a single light hanging overhead. Bogdan was sitting at a desk with his back to Liberi.

Walking up, Liberi asked, "So, what are you making this time?"

Bogdan spun his chair around to reveal his creation. Smiling he said, "Finished!"

Liberi looked at the device. Then he asked again, "So... what are you making this time?"

Bogdan smiled up at Liberi and waved his hand over his creation. "I have made a device that will make anyone within range my slave. They will love me uncontrollably and do whatever I wish. World domination is at hand!"

Bogdan looked at Liberi for validation. Then he looked back at his creation. Scratching his head he said, "It is also may be the best french-fry maker ever created... I dunno, I haven't tried it out yet."

Liberi just shook his head. Looking at Bogdan he said, "It's time for us to prepare. She wants us to begin immediately."

* * *

Everyone was watching while the ceremony was set up, crossing their fingers and hoping all went according to plan.

The magic circle had been drawn on the ground by SilentWhim. Shassy was in the middle, and Kage and Eternal were on each side of her. As SilentWhim went through the incantations, Eternal began to weave a magical bubble over the circle. Kage used his elemental power to bring forth the four elements, earth, wind, fire and water. When it was ready, SilentWhim motioned for Kage and Eternal to join her in her chant. Shassy was holding her pocket in front of her.

SilentWhim spoke to the others. "I need all of you to help. Without you I do not think we can succeed." Motioning for them to come closer she said, "Join hands in a circle around Shassy."

As soon as the circle was complete, SilentWhim began chanting, "Domo-kun. Kaw-Kaw. Domo Kaw kun." As she spoke, a small sliver of light formed at each of the elemental corners. With each passing second, the lights grew in size. Soon it was hard to see Shassy in the middle. When it seemed as if the light couldn't get any brighter, there was a loud POP.

The light quickly faded, and everything returned to normal. Shassy was lying on the ground in the center of the circle. Everyone looked at SilentWhim as she knelt down wearily. She reached out and touched Shassy where she lay. "Come now, my child. It is all over."

Shassy sat up and rubbed her eyes. As she did, the pocket she was holding began to wiggle around. Picking up her pocket she looked inside. There were two huge eyes staring back at her. The wiggly, brown, furry shape popped its head out of the pocket and said one word.

"Kaw!"

 **Chapter 6 - Targeted**

Liberi and Bogdan left the hideout through a secret tunnel that Boggy had dug. The tunnel stretched across the length of the VGG building, and connected to the sewer tunnels beneath the town. Bogdan pushed aside a cover and they both entered the sewers.

"Where are you leading me now?" Liberi asked irritably. "This place smells just like a stadium bathroom... Yuck." Bogdan just whistled happily, totally unaware of Liberi's frustrated demeanor.

The round tunnel had a small walkway on the side, and they both climbed up on it to avoid the putrid water. After several turns and twists, Bogdan stopped in front of a rusty metal door with a red light above it. Pulling a small remote from his pocket, Bogdan pushed a button and waited. After a few moments, they heard metal groaning and the door swung open.

Once they were inside, the bad smell disappeared immediately. The large room was almost empty except for two tables, and large barrels that lined one wall.

There was a smell of gunpowder in the air. As the approached the barrels, it became stronger. Bogdan smiled back at Liberi and pointed to the barrels. "Boom!" he said excitedly. "We have enough explosives here to completely destroy OT Town!" His eyes glazed over at the thought of it. "I can't wait to light these things and watch it rain blood!"

Liberi raised his eyebrow at Bogdan and said, "Just wait until I'm long gone before you get too excited and blow us all up." As he was speaking, the door at the end of the room opened up, and a man pushing a cart full of barrels entered the room.

"What's up guys?" Ultracide asked casually. "I have 15 more barrels that need to be filled. And since you guys have been gone this whole time, you can fill them yourselves."

Liberi rolled his eyes at Ultra, and walked through the door to fill some barrels.

Bogdan was still busy admiring the bouquet of gunpowder that was before him. "You really could do it... you could blow it all up." Smiling at Ultra, Boggy added, "It almost makes me want to light a match right now!"

Ultracide put up his hands in mock terror. "Take it easy, Boggy. We have a lot to do before showtime."

Walking towards the exit, Ultracide reminded Bogdan. "Remember. We need those 15 barrels filled tonight or we won't have enough to do this!"

Bogdan nodded his head, but continued to stare the barrels. Ultracide just laughed, and right before he closed the door he said, "I'm going to talk with the Boss. I'll see ya later... [Peace Out]!"

* * *

After SilentWhim had performed the ritual to return Kaw to Shassy, her powers were weak and drained. She had been led away by Eternal and Kage to rest at Savara's home.

"You can stay as long as you like," Savara told SilentWhim. "I wouldn't dream of you walking all the way back home after that."

SilentWhim thanked Savara and informed everyone to stay close and wait for further instructions. "I must clear my mind before we continue. There is evil close to here. I can feel its presence."

Leon said he would stay at the town square with Savara until everyone returned there that evening. Hoshi, Damio and Cheng excused themselves and left for their shop. "We will see you all tonight!" Hoshi yelled back to them as she left.

Dal and Shassy were the last to leave. Shassy Cooed and hugged her little friend. "How's my lil Kaw-Kaw?"

Kaw just giggled and bounced around in his pocket talking back to Shassy. "Mommy mommy Kaw kun!" Soon they were on their way home.

During this time, Dal had remained quiet. Soon Shassy noticed the silence and looked up at Dal. "Is everything okay, Dal?"

Dal sighed heavily and patted Kaw on the head. "Hi there, little buddy."

Shassy waited for Dal to answer her, and after several long moments, he responded. "Shassy..." He paused. "I am glad that you have your friend again. I know it was hard for you when he had to go the last time." Kicking the ground with his shoe, he continued, "I am just scared..." His eyes met hers and he reached out to touch her hand. "Last time we all fought together...you died!" He stopped walking and stared at her. "I can't lose you again, Shassy. It was too painful. I can't go through it again."

Shassy smiled at Dal to reassure him. "But I didn't die, Dal!" Smiling at her pocket, she added, "Lil Kaw saved me!"

Dal looked at the pocket and shook his head. "No, Shassy, Kaw was the reason for all the trouble in the first place. It was fortunate that he was able to save you, but he is a danger to all of us!"

Dal looked down at the pocket as Kaw poked his head over the edge. His big eyes seemed even bigger. "I like you, little Domo buddy," Dal said to the pocket chibi. "I just know that we will never be safe as long as you are here."

Shassy nodded her head at Dal. "I know what having Kaw here means, Dal. I'm scared too." She reached out and brushed his hair from his face. "But I also know that OT Town needs us. And I'll do anything to make sure it's safe."

Dal nodded his head again, but said nothing more on the matter. "Let's go home and get some rest, Shassy," Dal said wearily. "We both have a long night ahead of us."

 **Chapter 7 - We're Back!**

Ultracide left the hideout and began to move along the walkway that Liberi and Bogdan had used to get there. Instead of going towards the VGG building, he walked deeper into the tunnels. The only sounds were his footsteps and the occasional dripping of water. After some time he arrived at the old abandoned subway station.

OT Town had planned on creating a underground railway for the townsfolk to travel to their work in, but the town had gone through some hard times and the project was scrapped. Still, most of the electrical lines had been run, and the tunnels had already been dug and built before they had canceled construction.

Ultracide walked towards the end of the station and went into the ticket terminal. Here is where it stopped looking like a subway station and began to look more like a throne room. Most of the interior had been removed and rebuilt. The walls were lined with torches, and the walls were made out of roughly cut stone. As Ultracide walked towards the 'Throne', he heard a woman's voice bickering and complaining to herself.

"They think they can just throw me away like garbage! I'll show them. I'll show them all!" Whirling around the woman screamed at Ultracide, "Where have you been?! I have been waiting for you for almost three minutes!"

Ultracide put his hands up in a defensive pose. "Sonia, I'm sorry. It's just that..."

He didn't have a chance to finish speaking before Sonia jumped up out of her throne and yelled even louder. "What did you just call me? Did you just call me... SONIA?" Swinging her scepter she smacked Ultracide in the head with it. "You will call me OverLord Sonia! You hear me? If you ever call me Sonia again I'll kill you! You got it?!"

Ultracide rubbed his head where she hit him and nodded his head. "I'm sorry, OverLord. I forgot my place..." Ultra looked up to see if she was going to hit him again, and when he saw she wasn't, he continued. "It's just that Liberi and Bogdan were late again, and I had to do some of their work for them."

Sonia waved her hand at Ultra, dismissing his words. "I am well aware of the progress being made. Or should I say, lack of progress?" Twirling her finger in the air, a portal opened up showing the workroom Ultra had just left. You could see Bogdan and Libs were busy packing barrels and labeling them with numbers. Smirking at Ultra, Sonia said, "Maybe if you worked faster you wouldn't be here making excuses."

Walking towards the far side of the room, Sonia motioned Ultra to follow her. There was a large silver table against the wall. It was old and damaged, but completely covered in magic scrolls. Sonia pointed at one of them in particular and said, "Hand me that scroll. It is time to bring back some old friends of mine."

Ultra did as he was told and watched as Sonia began to grab materials from several of the jars she had lined up on the wall. Once she had everything she needed, she began to measure equal amounts into two identical cauldrons.

Mumbling her incantations Sonia said, "Out of one came two and the two returned to one." Sprinkling some powders into the cauldrons she continued, "The one was gone while the two remained, now the two are here and Evil is gained!"

Several bubbles rose to the surface of the cauldrons. As Sonia repeated her chants. The bubbling cauldrons began to spark and shake. Sonia raised her hands and twin lightning bolts shot up in the air. There was a loud crack.

There was smoke all around them. Sonia waved her hands to clear the air. As it cleared, you could see that the cauldrons had cracked in half, and there were two shapes laying in the middle. As Ultra looked closely, he could see that there was a man and a woman. Both of them had identical outfits on, with capes. And they both had nametags on them.

Sonia smiled and asked, "How are my old friends?"

* * *

Kage and Eternal were sitting in Savara's home while SilentWhim rested. They had been talking about the return of little Kaw. Eternal was saying excitedly, "I can't believe that Kaw is back. I thought he was gone forever!"

Kage nodded his agreement. "I am in shock myself, but I have learned to trust my mentor's abilities." Smiling at his wife he said, "It is good to have Kaw here. It seems that he is around when he is needed." Pausing slightly he added, "I just hope that we are ready..."

As they were talking they heard SilentWhim cry out in pain. Rushing to her room, they saw her holding her chest with a hand stretched in the air. She seemed to be struggling within herself.

Running to her side Kage asked, "What is it? What is wrong?"

Grabbing his hand with amazing strength, SilentWhim gasped, "They are here. They have returned!"

Eternal's face was pale and frightened. "Who is here, SilentWhim? Who?!"

Looking at her pupil's wife, she whispered, "The Silent Twins!"

 **Chapter 8 - Something Old, Something New**

Kage was running as fast as he could.

SilentWhim's outcry had thrown him into action. Eternal hugged Kage and with a quick kiss said, "Hurry!" Kage embraced his wife briefly and ran without saying a word.

Racing up the road towards town, he spotted Savara and Leon sitting outside at a table at the local eatery. As Kage approached them they took notice and waved. Rushing up to them, out of breath he gasped, "Silent... Silent Twins..."

Leon and Savara exchanged glances. Leon spoke first. "What's this, Kage? What's wrong?"

Composing himself, Kage straightened himself up and spoke clearer. "The Silent Twins! They have returned!"

Savara shook his head and moved towards his weary friend. "What's going on here, Kage? Those two are long gone... We watched them both die!"

Leon nodded with him. "You saw it too. We were all there."

Shaking his head in frustration Kage urged his friends, "Please. I know this seems absurd, but we need to get the others! I'll explain it on the way."

As the trio ran off, a young woman slowly got up from the table behind them and calmly walked the opposite direction. After moving off a safe distance she looked towards the vanishing three. Smiling grimly she twirled her finger in the air.

A small portal opened up and Sonia's face appeared. "What is it?" she barked. "What do you have to report? I'm busy at the moment!"

Rukko calmly smirked at Sonia and said, "Hmph! Sorry to bug you! I just thought you would want to know that your enemies seem to know what we are up too. And they are running off to get their people together right now!"

Sonia's face went pale for a moment. Then she yelled back at Rukko, "It doesn't matter what they think they know!" Fiercely pointing at herself, she screamed, "I know what we have planned! The rest of you are in the dark, like you should be. Now get back to base. We have work to do!"

Rukko rolled her eyes and said, "Whatever, boss." Smacking the portal shut, she looked quickly around and then began walking towards the VGG building.

* * *

Ultracide was in shock.

After he watched the Silent Twins' rebirth, he was speechless. While Sonia was busy with Rukko, he inched over towards the table and sat down in a heap. "How did she do that?!" Ultra thought.

There they were, sitting in a daze, looking around at themselves and the others. Sonia, finishing with Rukko, turned to them and smiled. "Hello, old friends. Miss me?"

SilentOne spoke first. "Sonia... how? What are we doing here? Last I remember my sister and I..." Growling, he said, "My sister and I were fighting over that stupid Domo!" Looking over at his sister, SilentOne paused, then spoke softly. "Then we were... destroyed by it."

SilentTwo sat up straighter and managed to recompose herself. "What happened, Sonia? How have you done this?"

Sonia looked down angrily at the two. "I expect better from those who I have resurrected from death!" Jumping up from her throne she yelled at the two, "I brought you back from nothing! Asmeret made you from that old witch, SilentWhim! And I brought you back without needing a host! What's wrong with you?"

The Silent Twins exchanged glances. SilentOne sighed and said, "I'm sorry, Sonia. Thank you for bringing us back. But tell me. How did you do it without a Domo?" Looking around, he added, "You certainly don't have one here." He raised his eyebrows at her in challenge.

Sonia glared at him and responded calmly. "I don't need a Domo. That was Asmeret's problem. She always had to have that infernal thing in her pocket. She depended on it too much. I have something new."

SilentTwo stood up next to her brother. "Something new? Pray tell us. What is it?"

Smiling at them both, Sonia hissed, "Who told you it was twenty questions time? Stop wondering and stop bothering me. I'll go over it all soon enough." Waving her hand at Ultracide, Sonia raged, "Make our guests comfortable! Show them to their rooms!" Leaving them all in shock, Sonia stormed off to her private quarters.

* * *

Shassy was playing with Kaw in the living room.

After Dal and Shassy had talked about Kaw, they were quiet the rest of the way home. Dal had went out back to bring in firewood, and Shassy made a small crib-like area for Kaw-Kaw in their room.

As Dal returned, he saw his bride-to-be laughing and playing with her Domo. He sat his bundle down and smiled at them.

Looking up from their play, Shassy caught Dal's gaze. "What is it, sweety?" she asked.

He looked at her with a grin and said. "It's nice to see you smiling like this again. I haven't seen you smile like this since..." He trailed off as he looked at Shassy. Walking into the room he knelt down next to her. Petting Kaw he said softly, "I'm scared, Shassy. Things have been calm. Peaceful. I don't want that to change, but..."

Before he could finish, there was shouting outside. Running to the door, Dal threw it open. He saw Savara and Kage running towards the house. He saw the fear in their eyes.

Shassy grabbed Kaw and ran outside with Dal. "What is it, guys? What's going on?"

Savara and Kage looked at each other with worried faces. Kage spoke softly, "We had Leon go to get Damio, Hoshi and Cheng." Looking at the ground he paused.

Savara jumped in, "We need to get to my store quickly!" Grabbing Dal's arm he urged, "We must arm ourselves! The Silent Twins have returned!"

 **Chapter 9 - Call of Duty**

Leon was huffing and puffing by the time he reached the Cookie Shop. Hoshi answered the door with a smile, but immediately replaced it with a look of concern. "Leon! What is it?"

Damio rushed into the room followed by Cheng. They both repeated Hoshi's question.

After a few moments, Leon had caught his breath and informed the Cookie Crew of the situation. "We need to get prepared!" Turning to Hoshi he asked, "Do you still have those bottles you showed me awhile back?"

Hoshi's face lit up with a smile. "Yes! Yes! I do! Let me go grab them!" She ran off and quickly returned holding three bottles. One of them said Strength on it, the other said Courage, and the last one said Skill. Smiling big, Hoshi told Leon, "I didn't know if I was going to be able to use these, but it looks like I may finally get the chance."

Cheng and Damio were busy piling cookies into a bag, and gathering their armors together. Damio looked up at Leon and asked, "Where are the others now?"

Leon quickly answered, "They are meeting at Savara's shop to gather weapons, then we are all returning to his home to make a plan of action." Looking around nervously he added, "I just hope that we can beat the SilentTwins again. We got lucky last time."

Everyone grew quiet at Leon's words. They hastened their packing...

* * *

Rukko was walking towards the VGG building. Making sure that no-one followed her, she slipped in the front door and began to make her way towards Bogdan's secret entrance. Once inside, she worked her way to the sewer tunnels that led to Sonia's hideout.

As she was walking she whistled to herself. It echoed strangely in the tunnels around her. She could hear it bounce around until it didn't even sound human anymore. Looking up from her musings, she realized she was in front of the explosives chamber.

After she worked her way inside she saw Boggy sitting there with an evil grin on his face. He was happily filling barrels. Liberi was also helping fill the barrels, but he did not look pleased. She waved at them both and moved into the large storeroom.

There were dozens of barrels lining the wall. Rukko walked up to the gunpowder barrels. Pulling a 'magic marker' out of her pocket, she began to draw a large cart. She worked slowly, outlining every detail. As she finished she put the cap on her marker and said, "Finished..."

If you had been there at the time you would have seen something extraordinary. As soon as Rukko said 'finished', her drawing jumped off of its page and began to materialize in front of her.

Soon there was a large cart, capable of carrying all of the barrels to wherever she chose. She smiled at her artwork and took a moment to appreciate it. Sighing, she turned away from her creation and twirled her finger in the air. Sonia's face appeared and Rukko said, "It's ready to go, all we need is locations for the barrels."

Sonia nodded her head slowly. "Good. Come back to the hideout. I have the layout plans here."

Rukko quickly agreed and closed the portal. She really hated working for Sonia, but it was better than the alternative. Rukko shivered slightly as she remembered Sonia's threat. "If I don't do what this crazy woman says, she is gonna kill my family..." Sighing, she left the barrels and began to walk towards the hideout.

* * *

While Ultracide was busy showing the Silent Twins to their quarters, Sonia walked briskly towards her private chambers. Looking around secretively, she entered her chambers and sealed the door behind her. Mumbling to herself she said, "These fools better not meddle in my plans. I will have my vengeance!"

Walking to the far end of her chambers, she opened up a large chest on the floor. There was a large pile of clothing, and she picked up a large vest. Sitting inside of one of the pockets was a strange looking creature. Sonia cooed to it softly, "How is my little Zen?"

The strange little Turmbat looked up at Sonia and gurgled happily...

 **Chapter 10 - Bad News**

As soon as everyone was armed and ready, they all converged at Savara's home to develop some sort of plan.

Everyone was crowded together in Savara's living room. Leon was waving his hands for everyone to quiet down. "Please please! Everyone calm down and listen!"

After a few moments, the room calmed down enough to resume. Leon nodded at Kage and took his seat. Kage smoothed his tunic and faced everyone. "I will not mince words, friends... the Silent Twins have returned!"

A murmur rose among them, and Kage quickly shushed them. "Stop! We have dealt with the likes of them before. This is not our main concern!" Looking gravely at the group he continued, "SilentWhim was once consumed by the likes of these two. But their life-force was dependent upon her."

He shook his head frustratedly. "This is different. SilentWhim is still among us. This lets us know that a new power is at work!" He confided to the group. "I only have bits and pieces... perhaps my bride can better explain..."

Eternal stood in the doorway with weariness on her face, yet she still had a smile for them. "Hello, my friends!" she said with false cheer, but abruptly took on a serious tone. "I have done what I can to care for SilentWhim, but strange forces are at work here."

She retreated back to the room and soon reappeared with SilentWhim on her arm. She looked weak and strained, but had a fierce look in her eyes. She turned to Eternal and nodded for her to continue.

Eternal turned towards them with a grim look. "From what we can construe, there is an imminent attack about to occur on OT Town. We must do what we can to avert this!" Eternal looked through the crowd and her eyes fell on Shassy. "Shassy! Your help will be needed the most... that, and the power of your Domo!" Waving her hand at the others, Eternal exclaimed, "The rest of you, this is a call to arms! We need to inform OT Town that an attack will soon happen, and they need to prepare."

While everyone rose to go to their duties, Shassy looked up at Dal. His eyes were cold and distant. Shassy looked at Kaw-Kaw and then back at Dal. He just shook his head and stood up from his seat...

* * *

SilentTwo was yelling at SilentOne. "Just what is going on here?" she screamed.

SilentOne was looking at his hands quizzically. Turning to his sister he exclaimed, "Do you remember the last thing you were doing?"

She yelled back spitefully, "Of course I do! I was..." She paused for a moment.

"Exactly!" SilentOne yelled. "You and I were in the midst of a fight over that stupid Domo!" Scratching his chin thoughtfully he resumed, "We fought over it and then..." He turned to his sibling. "We were destroyed by it."

Looking at his sister with alarm, SilentOne said, "Somehow, someway, Sonia has brought us back from death. That! And she has managed to do it without the use of a Domo!"

SilentTwo wrung her hands in frustration. "What should we do?"

SilentOne turned to her and spoke slowly. "We will do what we always do, sister... We will wait for opportunity to strike! Then we will see what this woman has in store for us!" The two of them shared a long hearty laugh.

* * *

Rukko paused before entering the hideout. "You can do this, girl!" she said to herself. Then she entered.

Ultracide was sitting there with his head in his hands. Looking up at her, he smiled weakly. "Watch out today. Sonia is in a baaaaad mood."

Rukko flashed her teeth bravely and said, "She doesn't bother me a bit! You need to stop letting her get to you!" She smiled bravely until she was past Ultra, then she let her face slide back in a frown. Stopping in front of Sonia's private chamber door, she sighed once and knocked.

 **Chapter 11 - Boom!**

Savara and Leon were busy going door to door telling the townsfolk of OT to prepare for an attack. Many of them were frightened. Some packed up to leave town. Others gathered weapons and waited for the attack.

Kage and Eternal were carefully taking SilentWhim back to her home. They needed supplies, and SilentWhim had some of the best in stock. The Cookie Crew took guard at the entrance of town. Dal went to the town square to inform the mayor, and Shassy went to caution the work crews of the incoming attack.

Dal was talking to the mayor as Shassy walked up to them. "Just keep your eyes open. We don't know where or when it will happen." Turning to see his future bride, Dal smiled widely. "There she is now, sir. She has beaten the likes of them before. She can do it again."

Shassy nodded a greeting to the mayor and curtsied. The mayor spoke to Shassy, his voice trembling. "My dear... I hope you can find and defeat those awful twins again!" Looking around nervously, he added, "The town has spent a lot of money setting up for its centennial. I would hate to see it all go to waste."

Speaking with more confidence than she felt, Shassy said, "Not to worry sir. The Silent Twins are as good as gone."

As the mayor walked away, Shassy turned to Dal. "So? Are we good?"

Dal paused for a moment, and spoke. "Yes, Shassy. We have always been good. It's just that Kaw..."

His voice trailed off as they saw Leon run up to them. "Guys! Come quickly! Savara found something! I think it may be a clue!"

Dal looked at Shassy and winked. "Later, sweety. There will be time later." She smiled and grabbed his hand, then they ran after Leon.

* * *

Sonia heard the knock on her door and quickly slammed her chest shut... only to hear a loud squeak of protest from inside. She reopened her chest to see the little Turmbat rubbing its head with its paw. "Sorry, Zen!" She hissed quietly. Then she carefully shut the case a second time.

Whirling around, she threw the door open and screamed, "What!?" She saw Rukko standing there with a pained look on her face. Sonia stared at her. "Well?"

Rukko sighed and spoke. "All is ready, Master Sonia. All the barrels are packed and ready for shipment."

Sonia smiled brightly. "Excellent! The time is now! Grab Ultracide and go to the tunnels. You all have your checklist. Make sure all of the barrels are put into place, and then return here!"

Rukko had never seen Sonia so happy. It was really strange, but she nodded and quickly replied. "Absolutely, Sonia. Going now!"

Sonia waited until Rukko was out of sight, then she began walking briskly towards the SilentTwins' chamber. She knocked on their door and waited.

After a moment, SilentOne opened the door a crack. "Yes, Sonia? What is it?"

Sonia's smile faded into a snarl. "Get yourself and your Sister out here now!" Calming herself she continued. "The time has come to pay those fools in OT town a little visit."

* * *

Hoshi and Damio were pacing back and forth at the town's entrance. Cheng had returned to their shop to gather a few bags of cookies.

"What are we looking for?" Hoshi asked.

"I'm not sure," Damio said. "We were told to keep our eyes open... but for what?"

As the two of them chatted, they did not notice the figure moving up slowly behind them. Without warning there was a flash of color and then a loud..

Slap!

Hoshi went flying! She landed hard on the ground and laid still. Damio looked where his friend was, then turned to see her attacker.

Slap!

Damio went flying through the air. All he saw were stars. Shaking his head, he thought, "OW!" His eyesight was blurry, but he could see the figure walking up to him. As Damio tried to stand there was another Slap!

All went dark...

 **Chapter 12 - 'Pop' Goes the Trap**

Bogdan was laughing...

He was running through the tunnels below town, following the auto-cart that Rukko had drawn for them. All the while he was whistling a strange tune. Whenever he reached a certain spot, he would stop the cart and check his map. He then placed a barrel in its spot and moved on to the next area.

"I can't wait!" he cried with glee to nobody. "This is going to be the most carnage that anyone has ever seen!" His eyes glazed over a bit as he dreamt of the scene. "I hope Sonia lets me push the button to set these off... If only!" He had already placed 30+ barrels and he still had that many to go. Focusing himself, Boggy continued on, smiling at his cart of death.

* * *

Rukko was standing in the room that they had loaded the barrels in. She made a quick circle in the air, and Bogdan's face appeared. She smiled and asked him a question. "We good? Have you placed them all?"

Bogdan smiled back and gave the thumbs up sign. "Wait until I get back!" he pleaded. "I want to watch it all go up!"

Rukko sighed, and then looked at her watch. Looking sternly at Bogdan, she said, "If you can make it back in the next five minutes I'll wait. Otherwise, take cover!"

Bogdan quickly agreed and the portal disappeared. Looking at her watch again nervously, Rukko made another small circle.

Liberi's face appeared. "What is it?" he asked irritably.

Rukko rolled her eyes at him and said. "We are ready. Are you back yet?"

Liberi shook his head. "No. I had to carry two of them and it slowed me down... I am almost there now."

Rukko nodded and replied, "Hurry. It's gonna go down really soon!"

Liberi nodded his head and the portal vanished. She looked down at her watch again. Boggy better hurry soon...

* * *

Dal and Shassy had followed Leon to the old VGG Building. There, Savara was impatiently waiting at the entrance.

"C'mon guys! Hurry!" Savara held the door open and he rushed his friends inside.

The building had long since been without power, and it took a few moments for their eyes to adjust. Then they saw Savara moving quickly towards the far end of the building.

As they arrived, he was pointing at a large pile of garbage and debris. He impatiently waited for them and then pointed at the pile. "Watch this guys." He kicked the pile once. Soon a red light came on above it, and it slowly began to move to the side. They all saw steps leading down. "I haven't checked it out all the way, but this has got to be an entrance... to what, I don't know."

Leon looked at Dal and Shassy. "What do you think guys? What's the plan?"

Dal straightened up, and with a quick glance at Shassy he said, "We wait... going down there without knowing what we are getting into is a bad idea. We need to contact Kage and Eternal, then gather Hoshi, Damio and Cheng."

As they were discussing it, there was loud crashing noises outside. As they ran back to the doorway, they saw a large Golem running past them. As it ran, its arms were swinging wildly and it was yelling, "Bandi smash!" Everything its hands touched turned into flying rubble.

Leon threw several towels in the air just in time to block bricks from hitting them. "Get Kage, Eternal, and the Cookie Crew here now!"

* * *

Kage and Eternal were busy filling their pockets with SilentWhim's stock. After they had laid her down for rest, they both began to raid her stores.

Kage was busy grabbing some healing potions when the ground shook. They caught each others eyes. Eternal, frightened, asked Kage, "What was that?"

Kage pocketed a few more potions and ran outside. He saw smoke coming from the direction of town.

Boom!

The ground shook again, and was followed by several more blasts. Kage turned to his bride. "We need to get to town now!" Grabbing his wife's arm he pulled her with him. "The attack has begun. We must go to our friends!"

As Kage and Eternal ran towards town, there were several more explosions, followed by rising smoke...

 **Chapter 13 - Doom**

There was smoke everywhere...

Kage and Eternal rushed passed the town entrance. The sight was horrific. There were rocks and pieces of mortar strewn all around. Most of the towns buildings were damaged. Some were on the verge of collapse.

Eternal ran past Kage to a woman on the ground. She knelt down next to her and felt for a pulse. Looking up sorrowfully at Kage, she shook her head.

"She's dead, Kage..." Sobbing softly, she looked at her husband. "Why?! Who has done this? Why did they..." She didn't have time to finish before there was a deafening Boom.

50 yards away there was a huge explosion. Fire and rock were thrown into the sky. Kage dived forward and grabbed his bride, rolling away and narrowly avoiding a falling rock. He quickly pulled her to her feet and guided her into an alleyway. "We must stop this NOW! More will be hurt unless we do!"

She wiped her eyes and nodded. "What should we do?"

He kissed her quickly and winked. "Find the others! They should be close by! I'll try to find the source of these detonations." They embraced briefly and parted ways.

* * *

Bogdan was laughing and jumping up and down. "Let me push the button again!" he screamed.

After Liberi and Bogdan had returned, Rukko began to detonate the barrels in order. She had started doing it herself, but Bogdan had insisted that he wanted to blow up a few.

"Look Boggy! I have to set them off in order and on time!" Rukko rolled her eyes at Bogdan. "If I let you set them all off now it will ruin the rotation!"

Liberi had arrived a few minutes after Bogdan, and had opened up a large portal for them to view the destruction. Every time they hit the controller, it was accompanied by a large explosion.

Bogdan was laughing with each boom. "It's beautiful!" he exclaimed. "I only wish I could be there to see it live."

Liberi shook his head and put the palm of his hand to his face. "Boggy? If you were there you would be hamburger! The entire town is wired to explode!" Liberi sighed loudly and turned to Rukko. "Look, my work is done here. I'm headed back to the hideout. The two I kidnapped will probably wake up soon. I'd rather have them be at the hideout."

Rukko nodded agreement and turned back to her goal. Bogdan was still yelling, "Hit the button! Hit It! Hit IT!"

* * *

Savara swung his axe...

The Golem was huge. When the troupe ran outside of the VGG building, they found themselves in a battlefield. Savara acted quickly swinging his axe at the beast. It met flesh and the Golem Screamed.

Leon went into action. He pulled several towels from his belt and began twirling them in each hand. He ran forward and jumped at the beast. As his weapon of choice made contact the Golem howled, "AhhhhhGGHHghhhhh!"

As Leon landed on the ground, there were two huge gashes in the monster's chest. Leon smiled widely and turned to the others. "Short work we have made of this..."

But as he gloated, the Golem recovered and swung his hands at Leon. The blow was intense. As the beast's hand connected, Leon was plucked from the ground and flung away. He landed in a heap and did not move again.

Savara watched his comrade fall and screamed in rage, "Foul Beast! I will END you!" He leaped at the Golem swinging his axe down from overhead. It struck the beast in the shoulder and severed its right arm. Bandicoot screamed and slapped Savara away with his good arm. The hit was mighty! Savara crumbled into a heap and lay still.

Now Dal screamed, "Spawn of evil! Today is your last day!" Dal pulled two curved swords from his belt. Howling with the fury of a thousand men, he ran headlong into the beast. Both swords slashed at the Golem's good arm. Dal twisted his blades and ripped the limb clean from the monster.

The Bandicoot screamed in pain and kicked at Dal. The beast's foot caught him in the chest and he went sprawling backwards.

"Dal!" Shasta screamed, as she saw her fiance fall to the ground. Blinking through the tears, she reached into her pocket and pulled out Kaw. Smiling grimly at the Domo, she said, "I have never asked you to help me, but I need you now!" She held the Domo in front of her and closed her eyes. There was a loud Boom!

* * *

Hoshi woke up in a world of pain.

As she sat up, her head was ringing. She held her head in her hands. "What happened?" she thought. Looking around she saw she was in a prison cell. As her eyes adjusted to the light, she saw she was not alone. Damio was laying motionless a few yards away.

Jumping up quickly, she tried to run to her friend. But the pain in her head made her fall to the floor again. Shaking away the pain she grimaced and crawled over to Damio. He was breathing softly. Hoshi sighed in relief, and softly shook her friend. "Damio! Please, wake up!"

 **Chapter 14 - Showdown**

Shassy sat up. She rubbed her blurry eyes to get a better look around her. The Golem Bandicoot was nowhere to be seen. As she looked around her eyes fell on a figure to her left.

"Dal!" Shassy screamed and crawled over to him. She had seen how vicious a blow he had received, but as she searched him for wounds she found none. There were several holes ripped in his clothing, but there was no damage to him at all, aside from him being unconscious.

As she went to help Savara and Leon, she found them in a similar state. Their clothing was damaged, but they were both unharmed. They too were unconscious.

She ran over and picked her pocket up off of the ground. Little Kaw just looked up at her with big eyes. She smiled down at him. "Thank you, Kaw. Thank you..."

A large explosion went off behind her. She jumped and turned around in time to see a building collapse. She had to get them to safety somehow. Running over to her friends, she began to drag them to clear of the road.

She had barely moved when another explosion went off right next to them. The building to her left began to come apart. Looking up, she saw a huge section break free and fall towards them. There was no escaping this. She closed her eyes...

* * *

Hoshi shook Damio again. "C'mon, wake up!" she pleaded.

Damio groaned and opened his eyes. His eyes met Hoshi's. "What happened?" he said groggily. "We were standing at the gate when..." He sat up painfully and held his head in his hands. "...when we were hit by something." He sat up straighter. "We need to get out of here... now! Who knows what is going on in town."

Hoshi was looking around their cell. Her eyes fell on the door and she walked towards it. It was a thick wooden door with steel bands. The door locked with a simple key, but Hoshi did not know how to pick a lock.

Smiling to herself, she turned to Damio. "I think I have a way we can get ourselves free." Pointing to her waist she added, "They forgot to search us carefully. I still have my bottles." She reached for her side and grabbed a small bottle labeled Skill. Grinning nervously at Damio, she said, "Here goes nothing."

She popped the top off of the bottle and took a large gulp. She hissed a loud, "Yuckkk!" and shook her head in distaste. She turned to Damio and exclaimed, "That was nasty."

Suddenly, she had a gleam in her eyes. She laughed to herself. "Of course! It's so simple!" She turned and walked towards the door. As she did, she pulled a hairpin from her head. Kneeling down at the keyhole, she went to work.

* * *

Kage was running furiously through town. If he didn't find the source of the detonations, more lives would be lost.

As he rounded the bend he stopped dead in his tracks. It was the Cookie Crew's store. It was demolished. Kage ran towards the ruin. As he looked through the rubble, he came across a body.

His worst fears realized, Kage knelt down by his friend. Shaking his head sorrowfully, he wept, "I'm sorry, Cheng. I'm sorry, my friend." He leaned forward and closed the eyes of his fallen comrade.

Standing up, his eyes burned with red fire. "I will make whoever is responsible for this suffer a painful end!"

* * *

Shassy waited for the inevitable... and waited. Opening her eyes, she looked up. The bricks and debris were still in the air. Not moving. She looked around and saw Eternal Moon standing with her hands in front of her. She was obviously struggling and shaking visibly. "Get them clear!" she said through clenched teeth.

Shassy jumped into action and pulled Dal, Leon, and Savara clear. As soon as they were clear, Eternal released her hold. The bricks unfroze and smashed to the pavement below. Eternal smiled weakly and crumpled to the ground.

Shassy ran over to help her friend. As she pulled Eternal to her feet she marveled at what she had just seen. "That was amazing, Eternal! I didn't know you could hold up that much weight! I have only seen you move small objects!"

Eternal smiled back at Shassy. Her voice was soft when she spoke. "I didn't know I could do it either... I just had to."

They hugged briefly and turned to help their unconscious friends.

 **Chapter 15 - Revenge is a Dish Best Served Cold**

Sonia sat in her private chambers petting her Turmbat Zen.

She was watching OT Town's destruction from a large portal. Occasionally she would laugh or clap her hands in delight at the ruin she had caused. She particularly enjoyed watching the Cookie Crew's shop crumble and fall.

Her next view took the smile off of her face. She leaned forward in her seat to get a better look. Eternal and Shassy were frantically dragging their unconscious friends towards the VGG Building... one of the few in town still standing.

"Impossible!" Sonia screamed, scaring little Zen and making him squeak in protest. She quickly consoled her Turmbat with soft words and closed him into his chest.

Turning back to her portal, Sonia began to pace back and forth. "How did they manage to survive?!" she mused. "It was planned perfectly..." She paused mid-sentence and laughed loudly. Wiping away her portal, she drew a new one.

Almost immediately Ultracide's face appeared. "Yes, OverLord Sonia?" he replied.

"Gather the others," she said with a smirk. "It's time we took a little trip into town..."

* * *

Kage was running through town...

He was filled with sorrow and rage. Everywhere around him were scenes of destruction and suffering. He stopped and helped those he could, but many were beyond any help he could offer. The town was mostly rubble and ash at this point, but fortunately the explosions had ceased. He was almost ready to quit his search when two figures in the distance caught his eye... The Silent Twins.

Spikes of anger rekindled inside Kage. There would be no holding back. There would be no mercy. He would end this here... now.

He ran towards them screaming, "I have come for you, Silent Twins! Pray that whatever gods you claim allegiance to will have mercy upon your souls. For I will show you none!" The Twins were surprised by Kage, and stepped back a pace, but they quickly recovered their composure.

SilentOne sneered at Kage. "Your puny skills are no match for our combined strength, young mage!"

His sister chimed in with, "What could you possibly do to us? You barely escaped us last time, and you had help from that stupid Domo!"

Without warning, SilentOne's hands shot out in front of him with a huge blast of electrical energy. The air around Kage crackled as he dove out of the way, barely avoiding being fried. He rolled to his feet and threw back a blast of air. The Silent Twins were knocked off of their feet, and landed in a heap.

Kage walked towards the fallen pair. "I have learned much since our last meeting, Twins of Evil. This time I will not be stopped!"

As he reached the pair, SilentTwo rolled over and struck Kage in the chest with a ice bolt. The cold numbed him to his core. He tried to lift his hands in defense but his frozen arms would not respond.

SilentOne rose to his feet with a laugh of triumph. "Foolish elemental. You should have known better than to face us. Now you will see your end." Flinging his hands forward, he sent forth a bolt of electricity. Kage was flung back several yards and crumpled to the ground.

The twins walked over to stand over their fallen enemy. "You should have never come here, young one," SilentTwo gloated. "You might have lived a little longer."

Kage felt himself fading away. He could not let them escape. He could not let them win... he must defeat them... for Cheng. Kage rolled over and pushed himself up. Struggling, he fought his way to his feet.

He stood tall in front of the twins. His eyes began to glow with a deep burning red flame. "No, it is you who should not have come here. It is YOU who will die!" With his remaining energy he raised his shaking hands and screamed, "Xiuhcoatl Vulcan Saraph!"

Liquid fire flowed out of Kage, then he knew no more.

* * *

Hoshi was telling Damio to hurry.

After she drank the bottle of Skill, Hoshi was able to quickly spring the lock on the door using her hairpin. They were moving down the hallway slowly, trying to be quiet.

"C'mon Damio!" Hoshi pleaded. "We need to get out of here and back to town. There is no telling what has happened!"

Damio groaned and held his head. "I don't know how you are even moving. That hit has got my head spinning so much I can hardly stand."

They continued down the hallway and through several locked doors. The bottle of Skill was still working and Hoshi picked the locks easily.

As they reached the end of a hallway, Hoshi motioned for Damio to stop. Looking around the corner she saw Rukko, Bogdan and Liberi sitting at a table and talking. Bogdan was excitedly chattering about the barrels. "If only we had some more to explode. That would be great.."

Hoshi turned back towards Damio and motioned for him to head back. "We are gonna have to find another way out. This one is blocked."

The pair walked back the way they came until they were at the opposite end of the hall. Hoshi kneeled down to pick the lock. Suddenly the door swung open. Hoshi and Damio were frozen in place.

Looking down at the two of them, Ultracide yelled, "Where did you two think you were going!?"

 **Chapter 16 - On a Mission**

Ultracide was standing there impatiently. "Well?! ...I asked you a question! Where were you trying to go?"

Hoshi and Damio were frozen in place. Nervously, Damio spoke. "Uh... We... we were just on our way out." Hoshi and Damio began to back away slowly.

Ultracide held up his hand and yelled furiously at both of them, "Stop!" Glaring fiercely at both of them he moved a few steps towards them, and closed the door behind him.

As soon as the door shut, Ultracide glanced toward it... and then broke into a large smile. "I'm glad you guys got yourselves out! I thought you were both goners for sure," he said almost whispered.

Hoshi and Damio looked at each other in confusion.

Ultracide grinned widely and began to explain. "I'm sorry about how I seemed earlier. I couldn't let the others know my plans." Ultracide motioned for them to move down the hallway and continued his explanation. "I have been working for Sonia for too long! She is cruel beyond imagination, and she is directly responsible for the death of my family!"

He looked at them with pain in his eyes. "I was born in OT Town. My family had lived there for many generations." His voice was hollow as he spoke. "She killed my family right in front of me. She forced me to serve her, or die with them... I was afraid, so I obeyed..."

He shook his head angrily. "I am not afraid anymore! She will pay for what she has done... But I can't fight her alone. I need help." Motioning towards a door he added, "I'll help you two escape, but you must help me defeat Sonia!"

Hoshi and Damio exchanged glances. Hoshi softly put her hand on Ultracide's shoulder. "We will help you Ultra. We all will." Damio nodded in agreement.

Ultracide smiled. "Okay then! Follow me, Sonia will be wondering where I went, and we can't be seen by the others." The trio crept down the hall and towards their escape...

* * *

Eternal was working to revive her fallen friends.

After their narrow escape, Shassy and Eternal had pulled Dal, Leon, and Savara to the safety of the VGG Building... one of the few left standing.

Leon was to first to come around and stubbornly refused any further care. "I'm fine!" he said to them. "I will stand guard while you help the others."

Eternal continued her work, while Shassy took a good look around the place. She noticed the entrance that Savara had found and was looking inside. "Maybe this leads to Sonia's hideout," Shassy thought. She was about to descend when she heard Savara's voice booming.

"What happened? Where is that thing? I'll kill it!"

Shassy ran over to them as Eternal was calming Savara. After they were all revived, and Eternal had explained what happened, the group tried to devise a plan. Savara thought they should try to find the hideout through the entrance they found.

Dal said, "We could sneak up on them and end this!" Leon nodded in agreement.

They all began to walk towards the entrance when Shassy looked back. Eternal was standing still there. Shassy's voice was soft as she spoke to Eternal. "What is it? What's wrong?"

Eternal shook her head slowly. "It's Kage... he told me he would meet up with us..." She looked up at Shassy with fear in her eyes. "He said he had to stop the explosions..."

Shassy smiled quickly and put her hand on Eternal's arms. "He was successful, Eternal. Listen... do you hear any more explosions?"

Eternal slowly shook her head. "No, but I'm worried. He should have found us by now. I'm scared he..."

Shassy quickly interrupted Eternal. "I'm sure he is fine. He would want us to keep moving."

Eternal nodded, and the group moved towards the entrance. They all began to descend. Eternal was last, and stole one final look towards town before she followed them.

* * *

Darkness swirled around him.

Kage tried to open his eyes, but stabbing pain forced them closed again. He tried to move, but his arms were chained against a wall. Groaning softly, he lifted his head forced his eyes open. The darkness around him was absolute. He heard water dripping from somewhere, and tried to focus on it. But his head felt like it was going to explode. As he became more aware, he heard voices echoing off the walls. He couldn't tell how far away they were but one voice was clear enough. It was SilentOne.

"He will suffer for this! He will pay dearly for what he has done! I should have burned him where he stood!"

The other voice spoke, but Kage couldn't make out what it was saying. It didn't matter though. The voice was instantly drowned out by SilentOne's screaming.

"He burned her! Look at her! Look at what he did to my sister! LOOK AT HER!"

Kage's head began to pound. He felt hollow. It was if someone had set fire to his insides and they were burned away. He was terribly thirsty. "I must escape this place! I must get to the others!" he thought frantically.

He pulled against his restraints forcefully. But the effort was too much for him, and darkness took him from consciousness.

 **Chapter 17 - At Long Last**

Sonia stood fiercely in front of her crew. "We are going to take a little trip!" she sneered. "It seems that our friends in town are not all dead yet."

Rukko, Liberi and Bogdan had been enjoying the scene in the portal of town when Sonia barged in. She was holding a small chest under one arm. "Well!" she screamed. "Why aren't you ready?"

The three looked at each other. "What do you mean?" Rukko said. Sonia glared at them. "Didn't Ultra tell you we were leaving?"

They shook their heads. "No, Sonia," Rukko said. "We have been here alone the whole time."

Sonia's face flushed red with anger, but she quickly composed herself. "No matter. I'll deal with him later. We are going to have a little excursion." She leered at her crew. "There are a few loose ends we need to tie up."

Liberi stepped forward and spoke first. "What do you have in mind Sonia?"

SilentOne stepped into the room behind Sonia. "We have a matter of revenge to settle." He smirked at Sonia and waved his hands at them to follow.

"To the tunnels!" Sonia screeched.

* * *

Ultracide held his hand up.

Damio, Hoshi and Ultracide watched Sonia and the rest from the doorway. They patiently waited until the group left the room to head to the tunnels below.

"Let's go!" Hoshi whispered furiously. Damio nodded in agreement.

Ultracide turned pleadingly to the others. "We can't go just yet." Turning back he pointed. "There is still one thing we need to do before we leave!"

Damio looked suspiciously at Ultracide. "What is it? What do we need to do?"

Ultracide sighed. "Look? I need you to trust me on this."

Hoshi shot a stern look at Damio. He ducked his head and turned to Ultra. "I suppose we don't have a choice," he said cautiously. "Lead the way."

The trio moved deeper into the hideout.

* * *

Savara was swearing softly.

"We shouldn't be down here!" he murmured. "We should be finding out who did this!"

Leon was in front leading the way, while Savara kept close behind. Shassy, Dal and Eternal brought up the rear. Leon and Savara had been arguing ever since they went through the secret entrance. Dal and Shassy had a few moments to embrace each other before moving on. Eternal had been silent since they went underground.

"We are going to find out who is responsible!" Leon said irritatedly. "They are more than likely at the end of this tunnel!"

Dal turned to Shassy and squeezed her arm, but said nothing else.

Shassy looked at Eternal. Her faced was a mask of concern. She knew that she was worried about Kage. "I'm sure Kage is just fine," Shassy said to Eternal.

Eternal turned to Shassy and smiled weakly. "Thank you. I hope he is..."

They all turned the corner to see Sonia, Liberi, Rukko and Bogdan standing in front of them.

"Well, well, well," Sonia laughed. "Isn't it nice to see you all here!"


End file.
